These outstanding young women join an exclusive group of distinguished women who have met the challenge of achieving the Girl Scout Gold, Silver, or Bronze awards.

	Celina Burchett Gold Award Recipient Celina Burchett worked to introduce her love of cheerleading and athleticism to disabled children at Oak Park Summer Camp through her project, "Handicapped Cheerleading in the Community." She also adapted her program to work with disabled adults and participated in Easter Seal’s Elvis Presley Celebration and incorporated cheerleading motions and dance into their pep rally. Celina's project addressed the issue of increasing self esteem in disabled children and adults by allowing them to learn new skills through cheerleading. QUOTE: “I learned that my job during my project was to help each participant to achieve his or her proud personal best, increasing their self-esteeem through new learned skills.”
	Raven Ford Gold Award Recipient Raven Ford recognizing that many recipients of the Meals on Wheels program are home bound and the importance of the companionship of their pet, established a pet food fundraising drive called “Dish It Out.” This program received an outpouring of community support and was successful in providing over 426 pounds of pet food to those in need in conjunction with their meal delivery. QUOTE: “It is the fact of knowing that I helped people that gave me great pride and satisfaction and made all my hard work well worth the investment of time and dedication to this very important endeavor.”
	Natasha Grabowski Gold Award Recipient Natasha Grabowski has a love for foreign language and developed “The Language Fair.” This program was designed to give elementary school aged children a glimpse of a variety of languages by selecting three languages of their choice out of the six languages available. Natasha recruited many student volunteers, teachers and her troop who “taught” lessons helping the children learn by playing an age appropriate game and positively impacting the students who attended. QUOTE: “I hope to become trilingual in a couple of years and teach high school foreign language.”
	Christian Harvey Gold Award Recipient Christian Harvey created a new library for the Port Charlotte Boys and Girls Club. She developed a plan, a budget and arranged the donation of furnishings and books from BB&T Bank. To further stock the shelves of the library, Christian partnered with Keep Charlotte Beautiful to conduct a book drive and also acquired books from a couple of school libraries. She assisted the children in decorating the space by supplying canvas and paints, creating a fun handprint mural of all involved. QUOTE: “My overall Girl Scout experience prepared me to take action and be a leader in everything I do.”
	Alyssa Heere Gold Award Recipient Alyssa Heere designed and created “Kids Can Camp,” an indoor and interactive camping environment. It was created for children who are in the hospital as a way for them to connect and experience camping in a way in which they can still remain safe. It includes two painted scenery backdrops decorated with flowers, a tent and even a campfire. Also included are a song and activities book, which she wrote and illustrated herself. It is a way that children in the hospital can have a chance to experience the outdoors and the joys of camping. QUOTE: “I learned that with determination, creativity and motivation that I could affect my community and share one of my interests with others.”
	Kallin Horne Gold Award Recipient Kallin Horne rallied other teens and college students to become more involved in community service and volunteering through her project “College Weekend.” She recognized the need to make an informative recruiting session exciting and interesting and scheduled a weekend of camping, fun activities and guest speakers at Camp Honi Hanta. Students invited from many Florida colleges were able to learn more about volunteer opportunities from a variety of organizations which Kallin recruited. Many students have become engaged in their communities thanks to this effort and there are plans underway for future College Weekends. QUOTE: “I have completed 14 years of Girl Scouting and plan to continue as an adult member.”
	Brennah McVey Gold Award Recipient Brennah McVey partnered with a local philanthropist in developing a non-profit organization, "The Magic Wand Project, Inc." which provides homecoming dresses and prom gowns to girls in need in our community. She developed an inventory system, advertised throughout the community, and arranged hair stylists and other volunteers to donate their services to Magic Wand clients. Brennah also co-created a website, themagicwandproject.com, and organized photo-shoots with local girls to model the dresses for the website. To date, over 200 dresses have been donated helping deserving girls homecoming and prom dreams come true. QUOTE: “I will continue to participate with the Magic Wand Project, and hope to inspire other programs like ours throughout the country.”
	Olivia Ponzio Gold Award Recipient Olivia Ponzio chose to team up with Wings of Shelter, Inc., a nonprofit Christian based organization assisting teen girls who are victims of human trafficking. She also worked with their partner called Shelter and After Care. Florida has the 2nd largest number of teen girls who have been victims of human trafficking and Olivia positively impacted this number through education to the public. She secured a booth at the Kid Fest in Cape Coral and educated girls 12 and up on how not become a victim. She also conducted a teen girl clothing/toiletries drive, and worked to coordinate speaking engagements with local civic organizations such as Rotary and Kiwanis. QUOTE: “My goal is to work for the Prosecutor and eventually become a judge. I chose this project because of my interest in the law aspect, and the fact that it directly affected teen girls.”
	Kimberly Reichenbecher Gold Award Recipient Kimberly Reichenbecher reconstructed the rose garden in the prayer garden at St. Francis Church. This garden was established in 1999 and over the years had deteriorated. Kimberly coordinated the efforts of her Girl Scout troop, three Boy Scout troops, the Horticulture Club and the Council of Catholic Women to assist with pulling weeds, relocating plants, placing weed barrier sheets, planting and mulching the entire area. Today there are 150 rose bushes thriving for people to enjoy. Kimberly also partnered with the horticulture club at the school to coordinate weekly maintenance and donations of additional rose bushes. QUOTE: “When visiting the rose garden, the smiles of the visitors and the school children give me a thrill.”
	Brianna Schrickel Gold Award Recipient Brianna Schrickel created a Serenity Garden at the HOPE Clubhouse. The HOPE Clubhouse is a new organization in Southwest Florida that assists people living with Mental Illness. The Hope Clubhouse provides opportunities for meaningful work, education and friendships. The Serenity Garden provides these men and women with a place to escape and relax when they are feeling stressed or overwhelmed. Brianna made two benches that she hand painted with relaxing scenes and inspirational words. She designed the garden to be peaceful and quiet with wind chimes, a water fountain and bird feeder for occasionally whistling birds. QUOTE: “In the ten years I have been a Girl Scout I have always wanted to work toward receiving the Gold Award. I believe this project will benefit the members for years to come.”

These are just a few of the many famous Girl Scouts that include politicians, writers, educators, businesswomen, scientists, and so many more. Join them in their quest for excellence and Start Girl Scouting today!