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Hazelwood Central, West High Girls Take Home Girl Scout Gold
HAZELWOOD GOLD AWARDEES: Sabrina Jones, Sarah Baucom, Ashley Wall, and Shannon Slavik receive their Girl Scout Gold awards at a Girl Scout ceremony downtown last month. Valecia McDowell, who attends Hazelwood Central High School, also received her Girl Scout Gold award.
Sarah Baucom, Sabrina Jones, Valecia McDowell, Shannon Slavik and Ashley Wall are all golden. The five Hazelwood high school students made it to the pinnacle of Girl Scout achievement by winning the girls organization’s top honor. McDowell is a senior at and Wall graduated from Hazelwood Central High School while Baucom, Jones and Slavik recently graduated from Hazelwood West High School.
The Girl Scout Gold award is the highest one that a Girl Scout aged 14 to 18 may earn. Their Gold Award project is something that a girl can be passionate about – in thought, deed and action. It can also be something that fulfills a need within a girl’s community, creates change and hopefully is something ongoing.
“I ran a girls’ sports day for Daisies and Brownies,” Wall said of her accomplishment. “They had to bring a friend who was not a Girl Scout.”
She had to organize basketball, soccer, volleyball and softball games as well as an obstacle course for the girls.
“In past sports days, I knew what to do but this time it was challenging because I had to meet with lots of different people, take money and make arrangements by myself,” Wall said.
McDowell said she collected and donated personal care items to St. Martha’s Hall, care center for abused women and children. “It took a week. It made me feel good because I knew they needed those things,” McDowell said. “It made me feel happy because I helped with something in the community.”
Slavik’s project echoed McDowell’s in its purpose.
“I collected personal care items from people in the community, put them into kits and sewed little pouches for each kit,” she said. “Then I delivered them to Northgate Nursing Home and Bentwood Nursing Home.”
“It was exciting. The Girl Scouts make a big deal about us and it was great to get the recognition after 13 years of being in Girl Scouts.”
Classmate Baucom also collected items, but in her case she gathered school supplies for KidSmart, a store in Bridgeton that caters to teachers who teach in educationally challenged school districts.
“I collected them from neighbors, from teachers at school and from others,” she said. “It took about three months to finish. I have a Ford Explorer and I filled it with two or three loads of things.
“I’m very happy to finally get my Girl Scout Gold award finished.”
