2026 Gold Award Yearbook

2026 Gold Award Yearbook

Dear Gold Award Girl Scouts, Families, and Friends,

This year, we proudly celebrate the remarkable accomplishments of 189 extraordinary young women leaders who’ve earned the most prestigious and highest honor in Girl Scouting: the Gold Award. Bold and visionary, the 2026 Gold Award class dared to dream big and take action, illuminating communities with lasting, meaningful change.

Through each act of service, every moment of compassion, and every courageous decision, you have created a ripple effect that brightens the world around you. Each effort to support others strengthens the bonds that make us more resilient, more united, and more hopeful for the future. When we lift others up, we all shine brighter. Together, we are golden.

Collectively, you contributed more than 15,120 hours of service hours that radiate purpose and bring to light the potential within each of you. By leading with courage, confidence, and character, you have tackled new challenges, addressed critical needs, and pioneered innovative solutions. Your dedication not only lights the way for your own bright futures but also inspires others to shine alongside you.

Earning your Gold Award is not the end of your journey it is the beginning of a lifetime of impact. You are forever part of the Girl Scout sisterhood, a community where we shine together. We can’t wait to see how you continue to lead, advocate, and inspire. As you step into the next chapters of your lives, carry the spirit of Girl Scouts with you always -- and consider becoming a lifetime member, helping the next generation of girls find their spark.

On behalf of Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles members, volunteers, board members, and staff, congratulations on this extraordinary achievement. Thank you for being the leaders and changemakers who make our world shine brighter, now and always.

Yours in Girl Scouting,

Theresa Edy Kiene Chief Executive Officer

Learn about Girl Scout Lifetime Memberships, scan the code above or go to https://qrco.de/GSLifetime

THE GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARD

What is the Gold Award?

Gold Award Girl Scouts are rock stars, role models, and real-life heroes. How do they do it? By using everything they’ve learned as a Girl Scout to help fix a problem in their community or make a lasting change in their world. And you don’t have to be a seasoned activist or star student to get there. Girl Scouts who want to get involved and go for the Gold Award get a team of trusted adults and leaders in their community to guide them through challenges and lead them to success, step-by-step. There’s no other program like it.

Earning the Gold Award requires spending at least 80 hours planning and implementing a challenging, largescale project that is innovative, engages others, and has a lasting impact on its targeted community.

The prestigious award recognizes Girl Scout Seniors and Ambassadors— girls in grades 9-12—for outstanding accomplishments in leadership, community service, career planning, and personal development.

Starting in 1916, the best and brightest undertook projects that improved their communities—and the world. The Golden Eaglet, the highest award in Girl Scouting from 1916-39, sparked the beginning of a long tradition of recognizing the extraordinary efforts of extraordinary girls. From 1940-63, the Curved Bar Award was the highest honor in Girl Scouting. From 1963-80, the highest award was called First Class. And since 1980, the Gold Award has inspired girls to find the greatness inside themselves and share their ideas and passions with their communities.

Nationwide, less than 6 percent of all eligible Girl Scouts achieve the Gold Award. And out of 111 Girl Scout councils, Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles (GSGLA) continuously boasts the highest number of girls reaching Gold each year.

Girls who earn their Girl Scout Gold Award automatically enter the military one rank higher, qualify for college scholarships, and are eligible for additional national service awards.

2026 GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARDEES

Talia Abrea

Youth Emergency Preparedness

Talia’s Gold Award project, “Youth Emergency Preparedness,” addressed the issue of loss of control and safety that many young people experience after natural disasters by educating them on emergency preparedness. Through interactive presentations and engaging coloring workbooks, she taught youth how to create a family evacuation plan, prepare emergency supplies, and protect their homes. As a result, participants gained the confidence and knowledge needed to face future natural disasters with greater readiness.

Avery Adelini

Tackling the Issue of Pet Shelter Overpopulation Through Education

Avery’s Gold Award project, titled “Tackling the Issue of Pet Shelter Overpopulation Through Education,” made an impact on her community by spreading awareness about the causes of overcrowding within animal shelters, and how we, as pet owners, can contribute to the problem. She held workshops for younger Girl Scouts to convey the importance of proper pet care, and created pamphlets for shelters and veterinary clinics on how owners can stay informed.

Joanna Alcaraz

Bridging the Access to Women’s Mental Health

Joanna’s Gold Award project, titled “Bridging the Access to Women’s Mental Health,” made an impact in her community by informing teenage girls of the importance of taking care of their mental health. Through workshops, she reached out to teen girls in her city and informed them of ways to alleviate mental stress and take care of their overall mental well-being through creativity. She had mental health advocacy professionals attend the workshops as guest speakers to go more in-depth about the benefits of taking care of one’s mental health and why it should be prioritized.

Jennifer Aoki

Summer of Fellowship: Church Camp

Ebook

Jennifer’s Gold Award project, titled “Summer of Fellowship: Church Camp eBook,” made an impact on her community by encouraging fellowship and friendship among youth from multiple churches. Her project increased awareness of the NJAUMC Summer Camp and highlighted how the camp brings individuals together across congregations. One component of the project was a spring curriculum focused on lessons taught at camp, which helped strengthen both faith and personal connections. The eBook highlighted different aspects of the camp experience and featured stories of those who were impacted, serving as a resource for both future and past campers.

Megan Apolonio

Let’s Talk Period

Megan’s Gold Award project, titled “Let’s Talk Period,” addressed the issue of lack of uterine health education for girls of color by teaching girls how to advocate for themselves. Through workshops, girls were able to learn the negative effects of menstrual stigmatization and shame. They also had open conversations about periods and were encouraged to promote the normalization of menstruation.

Galina Arakelian

Planting the Future: Empowering Communities Through Outdoor Sustainability

Galina’s Gold Award project, titled “Planting the Future: Empowering Communities Through Outdoor Sustainability,” addressed the issue of limited outdoor sustainability education by creating hands-on planting activities focused on drought-resistant succulents. Through interactive lessons on proper plant care, including watering schedules and sunlight needs, the project taught children the importance of environmental responsibility. This project empowered the community by promoting sustainable practices and long-term care for the environment.

Estella Arias

Building a Sensory Room for Student Support

Estella’s Gold Award project, titled “Building a Sensory Room for Student Support,” made an impact on their community by designing and implementing a safe, calming space for students with sensory and emotional needs. The project provided tools and resources to help children regulate their emotions, improve focus, and feel supported in their learning environment. Through this effort, the school now has a lasting resource that promotes inclusivity, wellness, and student success.

Maniya Arnold-Brownlee

The Peer Power Posse: Mentorship to Inspire Growth

Maniya’s Gold Award project, titiled “The Peer Power Posse: Mentorship to Inspire Growth,” made an impact on her community by providing the education and tools to end relationship abuse, as well as the importance of creating powerful connections and friendships.

Sofi Aslanian

Mental Health Awareness for Athletes

Sofi’s Gold Award project, “Mental Health Awareness for Athletes,” aimed to address the issue of mental health struggles in athletes by raising awareness and reducing stigma. Through presentations, she spread messages of having good mental health by providing strategies, resources, and ways to receive help. She left audiences with brochures that had contact information to mentsl health hotlines.

Kadence Au

Bring Out the Books

Kadence’s Gold Award project, titled “Bring Out the Books” made an impact on her community by building and providing a library on wheels to a local elementary school, Bella Vista Elementary. This library provided children with another source of entertainment beyond sports and social media. The young scholars read the books and took surveys, which have reported to improve their moods and encouraged the school to invest more into their students’ literacy.

Sarah Barron

Youth Safety on the Road

Sarah’s Gold Award project, “Youth Safety on the Road,” addressed the issue of the lack of safety pedestrian habits and traffic awareness, which can put students at risk near busy streets and intersections. To help solve this problem, Sarah created educational materials and shared them with youth in the community. Sarah also developed a coloring book and a video to teach younger students about the importance of traffic safety in an engaging and easy to understand way.

Celeste Bautista

Preschool

Pal’s

Pocket Library

Celeste’s Gold Award project, titled “Preschool Pal’s Project Library,” addressed the issue of passive screentime and the lack of educational resources by designing and installing a sustainable Little Library at a local preschool. She created specialized out-of-class lessons, hosted workshops, and led community awareness events and donation drives to provide educational resources for low income families.

2026 GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARDEES

Ariel Ben Mocha

Student Athlete Mental Health Awareness

Ariel’s Gold Award project, titled “Student Athlete Mental Health Awareness,” addressed the issue of mental health in high school student athletes. This was done through the sharing of her struggles with mental health in athletics. Alongside this, she gave presentations to local high schools about the importance of mental health and ways to ask for help. In collaboration with the Sarah Shulze Foundation, Ariel made a mental health awareness video that has been shared through social media platforms such as YouTube and Instagram.

Ineesha Bhargava

Inclusive Play: Adaptive Volleyball Clinics

Ineesha’s Gold Award project, titled “Inclusive Play: Adaptive Volleyball Clinics,” addressed the issue of limited accessibility and inclusivity in youth sports for children with disabilities by creating and hosting 15 free adaptive volleyball clinics. She independently planned drills, recruited and trained volunteers, and structured the clinics to ensure all participants felt supported, capable, and empowered in an athletic environment. Overall, the project fostered inclusive community spaces and promoted long-term awareness of adaptive sports and equal access to physical activity.

April Boggs

The Everyday Experts

April’s Gold Award project, titled

“The Everyday Experts,” addressed the issue of students not being ready for life after high school by creating a series of homeroom lessons and club meetings to teach life skills. These included topics such as, car maintenance, taxes, budgeting, and grocery smarts. Students learned how to adult through interactive learning games.

Noa Bookstaver

Your Migraine Manual: What to Expect When You’re Expecting... Migraines.

Noa’s Gold Award project, titled “Your Migraine Manual: What to Expect When You’re Expecting... Migraines,” made an impact by creating a manual that serves adolescents and those diagnosed with chronic illnesses. The guide created will help readers cope with migraines.

Faith Bosanko

State Park Field Guides

Faith’s Gold Award project, titled “State Park Field Guides,” made an impact on her community by creating three unique, educational field guides about the Chino Hills State Park in both an adult and child format. The field guides addressed the topics of birds, ethnobotany, and local history. She hosted a kick-off event to promote the guides at the state park, where both Girl Scouts and the larger community came and enjoyed a day of related activities and hikes.

Sarine Boyajian

Poverty Awareness and Action

Sarine’s Gold Award project, titled “Poverty Awareness and Action,” addressed the issue of poverty and lack of awareness about food insecurity by educating Girl Scouts about real-life poverty conditions. She partnered with Children’s Hunger Fund and led girls through the Poverty Encounter exhibit to help them understand the struggles faced by families in need. Through presentations, hands-on experiences, and reflection surveys, she encouraged empathy, service, and a desire to make a lasting impact in the community.

Briar Bryant

Brave Beginnings: Building Confidence in Young Children

Briar’s Gold Award project, titled “Brave Beginnings: Building Confidence in Young Children,” made an impact on her community by empowering young students to build self-confidence through interactive learning. She designed and developed a multi-platform initiative, including a mobile app, website, and workshops, to provide accessible tools and resources that support personal growth. Through leading eight workshops reaching over 22 participants, she created a supportive environment where students could develop confidence, communication skills, and leadership skills.

Raquel Butler

Turning Pages

Raquel’s Gold Award project, “Turning Pages,” made an impact on her community by providing individualized virtual reading support to elementary school students facing literacy challenges. Through one-on-one mentorship with high school volunteers, the program created meaningful connections that fostered both academic growth and personal confidence. By offering a supportive and encouraging environment, “Turning Pages” helped young readers develop a stronger love of learning and belief in their abilities

Caitlynn Cass

Trade Fair

Caitlynn’s Gold Award project, “Trade Fair,” made an impact by providing information about local trade schools, certification courses, and job opportunities for local high school students and community members. Caitlynn created a trade fair day, similar to a college fair, to connect her community with opportunities that otherwise wouldn’t be advertised. By offering information on various trade programs and schools and how to get started in a specific feild, her community is now more equipped to get started and know of the trades and untraditional options after high school..

Keira I. Chang

Money Management Magic

Keira’s Gold Award project, titled “Money Management Magic,” addressed the issue of financial illiteracy in the general population by creating a children’s book that introduces foundational financial concepts like saving, budgeting, and teamwork through storytelling. She then donated over 250 copies of her book to schools, libraries, children’s hospitals, and Girl Scout troops, where she also hosted interactive workshops and reading sessions, ensuring access for over 6,000 children in underserved communities.

Elise Chen

Think Globally on Climate, Act Locally on

Leaf Blowers

Elise’s Gold Award project, titled “Think Globally on Climate, Act Locally on Leaf Blowers,” made an impact on her community by leading her school’s transition from gaspowered to electric leaf blowers. She educated over 100 students, staff, and community members through presentations and workshops on the health, noise, and environmental impacts of gas leaf blowers. Through fundraising, she raised over $1,650 to donate a professionalgrade electric leaf blower, supporting a sustainable, longterm change on campus.

Miya Chen

Big Feelings, Bright Futures

Miya’s Gold Award project, titled “Big Feelings, Bright Futures,” addressed the lack of resources for young children’s mental health by collaborating with a child psychologist to present informational slideshows, provide handmade coping/breathing technique booklets, and create a quiet corner in their classroom.

2026 GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARDEES

Samantha Cheung

Keeping Young Eyes Healthy in Underserved Communities

Sam’s Gold Award project, titled “Keeping Young Eyes Healthy in Underserved Communities,” addressed the lack of accessibility to eye care in San Quintín, Mexico. By focusing on preventing severe conditions from occurring in the first place, she educated over 180 patients on the five most common eye diseases in their region and ways to prevent them, including essential habits to maintain excellent eye health. She created a presentation with a poster board, educational pamphlets, activity books for kids, and distributed sunglasses.

Hana Cho

Girls Who Build the Future

Hana’s Gold Award project, titled “Girls Who Build the Future,” addressed the issue of the gender gap in STEM by writing, illustrating, and publishing a children’s book about women in STEM. She created a curriculum including pre- and post-reading assessments and taught classes at her local YMCA, elementary school, and Girl Scout troop. Overall, her students had a 30% increase in their understanding of the material she taught and gained confidence as future workers in STEM fields.

Nyla Cho

Viva el Baile Folklórico: Celebrating Culture and Tradition Through Social Media

Nyla’s Gold Award project, titled “Viva El Ballet Folklórico: Celebrating Culture and Tradition Through Social Media,” made an impact on her community by keeping the Mexican culture alive by continuing the tradition of baile Folklorico. This was done through making the dance more accessible to a wider audience through the use of social media. Using YouTube and TikTok, she was able to reach broad audiences to share and inspire the cultural pride and value of tradition through the demonstrations of the dance steps and costumes.

Elizabeth Chou

Better for the Butterflies

Elizabeth’s Gold Award project, titled “Better for the Butterflies,” addressed the issue of the Monarch butterfly population by creating a space that supports the Monarch butterflies and their risk of extinction as they are large contributors towards our environment.

Samantha Chyn

Healthy Cooking, Healthy Lifestyles

Samantha’s Gold Award project, titled “Healthy Cooking, Healthy Lifestyles,” addressed the issue of increasing chronic illness trends by providing hands-on cooking and nutrition education to teens.

Katya Clark

Debate and Democracy

Katya’s Gold Award project, titled “Debate and Democracy,” made an impact on her community by creating a political debate program that sparked conversations and shattered boundaries within high schoolers. She was able to connect with lower income communities to show that education is not only for those with money and inspire the people around her. Through this program she was able to build an independently thinking community that wasn’t afraid to challenge the norm or fight for their own beliefs.

Kayla Clayton

Fuel Her Power

Kayla’s Gold Award project, titled “Fuel Her Power,” addressed the issue of underfueling and poor nutrition in female athletes by teaching them how proper nutrition supports their performance and health. She worked with multiple schools and Girl Scout troops to host workshops and presentations designed specifically for girls in sports. Through these sessions, she helped athletes understand how balanced meals improve energy, strength, recovery, and overall well-being.

Ava Consani

Richstone Summer Reading Program

Ava’s Gold Award project, titled “Richstone Summer Reading Program,” addressed lower reading scores in a Los Angeles county community by implementing a free summer reading program that provided additional reading support to children attending the Richstone Family Center.

Cristina Couch

Education Renovation

Cristina’s Gold Award project, titled “Education Renovation,” made an impact on her community by collaborating with guidance counselors and educational specialists to develop and lead workshops to aid student’s understanding and application of their unique learning styles. She compiled research, conducted interviews, and disseminated surveys to create workshop content and better understand the cognitive diversity within her school system. She then digitized workshops, designing an interactive online course and social media accessible beyond in-person events.

Kaitlyn Covarrubias

Saving Youth Pipe Bands

Kaitlyn’s Gold Award project, titled “Saving Youth Pipe Bands,” made an impact on her community by raising awareness for youth pipe bands, giving Glendora High School pipe band a space to practice, and creating curriculum for youth pipe bands to follow. Through her project, Kaitlyn was able to completely remodel a room for the Glendora High School pipe band, teach elementary schoolers basic note fingerings, teach older students how to use music writing software, and help raise recruitment numbers for youth bagpipers. Her favorite part of the project was sharing her experiences and teaching new things to both high school and elementary students.

Sophia Covarrubias

A Summer of STEAM

Sophia’s Gold Award project, titled “A Summer of STEAM,” made an impact on their community by providing focused STEAM lessons to campers ages 6-12. By training a team of counselors to assist, Sophia taught campers basic science concepts and created engaging lessons designed to encourge teamwork and facilitate learning. In her project, she designed eight lessons that would provide campers with basic science skills and encouraged campers to think critically about the world around them. Overall, her project provided access to scientific exploration for campers of all different ages and backgrounds.

2026 GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARDEES

Alyssa Dahya

Sprouts Club and Social-Emotional Development

Alyssa’s Gold Award project, titled “Sprouts Club and Social-Emotional Development,” made an impact on her community by fulfilling the need for emotional intelligence and positive role models for youth in transitional housing. She developed and led five socialemotional learning workshops to engage and teach youth from toddlers to sixth grade at Door of Hope. She also found fifteen accessible summer programs to support the goal of further enriching and expanding educational opportunities for youth.

Taline Doudian

LGBTQIA+ Poems and Artwork Book

Taline’s Gold Award project, titled “LGBTQIA+ Poems and Artwork Book,” made an impact on her community by expanding awareness of the queer community. She reached out to members of the queer community to contribute artworks to help others humanize their experiences. Finally, she presented to both middle and high school students, along with putting her books in several libraries for people to gain easier access.

Ruby Espinosa

Street Tree Planting

Ruby’s Gold Award project, “Street Tree Planting,” made an impact on their community by planting street trees, educating the community on how to add more trees, and revitalizing a neighborhood council committee to help continue tree planting efforts.

Ava Evans

Adventure

for Beginners

Ava’s Gold Award project, titled “Adventure for Beginners,” made an impact on her community by introducing families to the outdoors. She led community nature hikes at the Rosemont Preserve, where she taught parents and kids how to safely navigate and explore outdoor spaces. Ava and her team also wrote, illustrated, and distributed a guidebook outlining everything families would need to know to go on outdoor adventures together.

Miranda Fang

Underrepresentation of Asian Women in Hollywood

Miranda’s Gold Award project, titled “Underrepresentation of Asian Women in Hollywood,” addressed the issue of a lack of diversity and inclusion of Asian American women on the big screen by increasing awareness among teenage Asian American girls. She provided high school students with the opportunity to work on a short film production. Miranda also created two informational videos online to foster interest in the entertainment industry by educating viewers on zero-budget filmmaking and emphasizing real student opinions on the issue. Additionally, she hosted two community workshops that helped participants understand that representation in the film industry is key to empowerment and confidence.

Alyssa Ferara

Air Quality & Comfort: Educating on Asthma

Alyssa’s Gold Award project, “Air Quality & Comfort: Educating on Asthma,” addressed the issue of kids not really understanding air pollution and asthma by teaching the dangers of air pollution and how to reduce it.

Through interactive lessons with experiments and activities for 5th grade students, discussion were had about what causes asthma and the different types of asthma.

Miranda Fernandez

Our Lady of Victory STEM classes Miranda’s Gold Award project, “Our Lady of Victory STEM Classes,” made an impact on her community by exposing elementary students to a STEM curriculum. The students not only learned what the acronym of STEM meant but also different projects associated with each letter of the acronym. This gave the elementary students in an underserved Catholic school STEM opportunities that they normally wouldn’t have, which means there is a higher likelihood they will go into a STEM career after being exposed to it.

Elaina Francis

Disaster Ministry Plan

Elaina’s project titled, “Disaster Ministry Plan,” made an impact by creating a Disaster Ministry team at the Foothill Vineyard Church to help the congregants and local community in preparation for and in the event of a disaster occurring within the area. She created a binder for the team to continue to prepare, serve, protect, and care for the congregants and local community.

Kelsey Frieborn

H.E.R (Helping Equality Rise)

Kelsey’s Gold Award project, titled “H.E.R. (Helping Equality Rise),” addressed the issue of creating awareness for high school students about civic engagement and how we can use voting to take action and make a difference. Kelsey created the Helping Equality Rise Club at Oak Park High School. During club meetings, she worked with the League of Women Voters to develop a curriculum that taught students about the importance of civic engagement, voting rights, and pre-registration, among other topics. She also hosted three voter pre-registration and registration drives, and over 600 students either preregistered or pledged to get involed in civics.

Dakota Frierson

Math BADDIES (Building Academic Discourse and Development Including Empowering Sistas)

Dakota’s Gold Award project, titled “Math BADDIES (Building Academic Discourse and Development Including Empowering Sistas),” addressed the issue of low confidence and limited encouragement in mathematics for Black and Brown girls, including girls who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing by creating engaging math workshops designed to make learning fun, affirming, and accessible. Through Math BADDIES, she provided hands-on activities, positive math discourse, and confidence-building opportunities for girls in grades K–8. Her project created a safe and empowering space where participants could strengthen their math skills, see themselves as capable learners, and develop a more positive relationship with mathematics.

Lexi Marico Frost

Bridging the Gap: Promoting Parent Understanding

Lexi’s Gold Award project, titled “Bridging the Gap: Promoting Parent Understanding,” made an impact on her community by bringing attention to the effects of a culture of academic competition on teenage depression rates. Students’ perspectives on parent pressure and personal well-being were collected through a survey, culminating in a video resource and research presentation for admin and parents alike—both bringing awareness to this issue, as well as providing strategies for adults to bridge the gap with their students. Both video and presentation exist as a permanent resource to refer to online, via LCHS’s Wellness Center website.

2026 GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARDEES

Vera Garabedian

Traffic and Pedestrian Safety Awareness

Vera’s Gold Award project, titled “Traffic and Pedestrian Safety Awareness,“ addressed how to be a cautious pedestrian and driver, specifically for teenagers who are getting ready to earn their learner ‘s permit and eventually a driver’s license Vera gave inperson presentations with a slideshow that she created to students and parents at her local middle school. She also designed educational pamphlets and an online video for them to keep and refer to. She collaborated with the Glendale Police Department to foster a safer community for pedestrians and drivers.

Lucia Gauto

Giving Back with Care

Lucia’s Gold Award project, titled “Giving Back with Care,” made an impact on her community by partnering with a local community resource center in East Los Angeles. The project provided school supplies to local schools and organized a clothing drive to help stock the center with free and lowcost clothing. The project also strengthened food access efforts by contributing small meals to a local community fridge initiative.

Maggie Gerlach

Stenciling at Launch Preschool

Maggie’s Gold Award project, titled “Stenciling at Launch Preschool,” made an impact on her community by providing designated spots for special needs preschoolers to line up on after recess. The painted butterflies, flowers, bees, and other garden stencils are fun for the preschoolers to stand on and help the teachers control their classes. This project also involved repainting the preschool’s bike track, making the school appear refreshed and more colorful.

Talia Goldin

Growing Your Groceries

Talia’s Gold Award project, titled “Growing Your Groceries,” addressed the issue of food insecurity by teaching gardening skills to kids, which increases their access to fresh food. Talia developed and published a 4th and 5th grade gardening curriculum, along with a video-based teacher guide, to equip students with the skills needed to grow their own food and to gain a deeper understanding of nutrition and food insecurity. She taught this curriculum at a Title 1 elementary school, rehabilitated the school’s garden, and established a garden supply box to encourage at-home gardening.

Abigail Gomez

So You Can Dance!

Abigail’s Gold Award project, titled “So You Can Dance!,” made an impact on her community by partnering with the city of Lomita’s Parks and Recreation Center to provide elementary-aged children free dance education.

Throughout this camp, students got the opportunity to attend a free activity over the summer that kept them off of devices, physically active, and exposed them to the art form of dance. Not only did this dance camp teach them the fundamentals of dance, but it also created lasting friendships and a newfound passion for this art form. By the end of the two-week camp students also learned about self expression through a culminating showcase that showed their friends and families what they learned.

Savannah Gomez

Dental Health Awareness

Savannah’s Gold Award project, titled “Dental Health Awareness,” addressed the issue of the lack of knowledge around dental health, particularly pertaining to children, by creating and leading interactive workshops that taught kids the importance of oral hygiene. Savannah came up with engaging activities such as games, demonstrations, and hands-on projects to help children learn how to properly care for their teeth. Through these workshops, videos, and educational materials, she provided children with the knowledge and resources needed to build lifelong healthy dental habits.

Lucilla Gonzalez

Pass Forward/Pasarlo Adelante

Lucilla’s Gold Award project, titled “Pass Forward/Pasarlo Adelante,” addressed the issue of cost barriers and unequal access that prevent many low-income youth, especially girls of color, from participating in sports after elementary school. It did this by collecting, cleaning, refurbishing, and redistributing gently used sports gear to young athletes in need in Southern California. Sharing how-to videos on the project also helped reduce waste by keeping sports equipment out of landfills and promoting sustainability.

Nyla Grey

Bite Delights

Nyla’s Gold Award project, titled “Bite Delights,” addressed the issue of food insecurity and food safety by designing and teaching cooking lessons through the Boys and Girls Club. She curated a total of eight recipes that utilized simple ingredients while being both nutritious and delicious. At the end of the course, students left with a broadened ability to practice essential kitchen safety, proper food handling techniques, and basic cooking skills that promoted independence and confidence in the kitchen.

Kendall Gustin

Closets for Confidence

Kendall’s Gold Award project, titled “Closets for Confidence,” made an impact on her community by providing custom outfits for elementary school students in clothing poverty. Clothing poverty affects a child’s motivation and confidence to learn and make new friends. With donations from hundreds of community members, Kendall was able to package multiple outfits for 45 students across five elementary schools, making a difference in their lives.

Presley Halverson

“Set” for Success

Presley’s Gold Award project, titled “‘Set’ for Success,” made an impact on her community by expanding athletic opportunities for underserved elementary school students. She constructed new volleyball courts at her former elementary school, led free volleyball clinics for students, and incorporated volleyball into the school’s P.E. curriculum. Through these efforts, she made athletics more accessible and set students up for success in their future athletic careers.

Emma Harr

Digitizing California DAR’s History

Emma’s Gold Award project, titled “Digitizing California DAR’s History,” made an impact on her community by creating the framework for the California Daughters of the American Revolution Chapters to each create and maintain a digital archive, and she taught them how to use it.

Sofia Henderson

The Power of Kindness

Sofia’s Gold Award project, titled “The Power of Kindness,” made an impact on her community by teaching 3rd and 4th graders about the importance and how-tos of kindness. She went over how to stay kind in conflict and dayto-day life. She also created a podcast that catered to teens about how to navigate relationships and kindness with our peers, community, and ourselves.

2026 GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARDEES

Ava Herczeg

Barks and Bandanas

Ava’s Gold Award project, titled “Barks and Bandanas,” made an impact on her community by addressing two issues: animals and unwanted clothing. “Barks and Bandanas” did this by taking old, unwanted clothing and upcycling it into supplies to increase the comfort and feelings of safety for animals in shelters.

Miriam Hernandez

Fidget Rice Bags for Senior Citizens’ Health Awareness

Miriam’s Gold Award project, titled “Fidget Rice Bags for Senior Citizens’ Health Awareness,” addressed the issue of limited hand movement and arthritis pain among senior citizens. By creating fidget rice bags, Miriam provided a simple tool to help improve hand mobility and reduce discomfort. Miriam also shared information with seniors about how using the rice bags can support hand exercise and promote better hand health.

Sara Herscovitz

Teens4Tweens

Sara’s Gold Award project, titled “Teens4Tweens,” made an impact on her community by mentoring 5th grade girls through puberty as they transition from a tween to a teen. High school girls shared their experiences, giving them advice about skincare, friendship problems, menstruation, and the transition to middle school. The 5th grade girls gained confidence and excitement about growing up, and expressed their love for the program.

Tala Hijleh

Middle Eastern Student Association

Tala’s project, “Middle Eastern Student Association,” made an impact in her community by starting an association of diversity at her school.

Sachi Hiromura

Black History IS American history

Sachi’s Gold Award project, titled “Black History IS American History,” addressed the issue of the absence of Black contributions to American society as well as the Black experience in middle and high school history textbooks. Sachi made resources on Black history more accessible to teachers through a website that organizes various types of historical resources according to the history curriculums followed by teachers.

Whitney Hoang

The Importance of Composting

Whitney’s Gold Award project, titled “The Importance of Composting,” made an impact on her community by educating youth and families about composting and environmental sustainability. She partnered with LA Compost and TAWA Food Rescue to host hands-on workshops at the LA Chinatown Branch Library, teaching participants how to reduce food waste and create nutrient-rich soil. Through these workshops, Whitney empowered nearly 100 attendees to adopt more sustainable habits and contribute to a greener community.

Emily Hohmann

The Need for Seed

Emily’s Gold Award project, titled “The Need For Seed,” addressed the issue of food insecurity in Los Angeles by planting a fruit and vegetable garden at an organization that provides women and children with transitional housing and essential resources. In the process of creating this garden, Emily organized a painting day in collaboration with the summer camp at the organization so that the kids there could paint the garden boxes.

Angelina Hongthong

Don’t Be Meek- SPEAK!

Angelina’s Gold Award project, titled “Don’t Be Meek - Speak!,” made an impact on her community by providing free, accessible speech and debate resources and mentoring to middle schoolers in the San Fernando Valley.

Olivia Hsu

Financial Literacy for Youth (FLY)

Olivia’s Gold Award project, titled “Financial Literacy for Youth (FLY),” addressed the issue of accessibility to financial education by creating a program gamifying learning. By collaborating with a local credit union, creating resources for Girl Scouts to obtain financial literacy related badges, and presenting on different topics such as assets, diversification, and budgeting, Olivia has been able to reach over 250 individuals. Olivia’s program is still ongoing and now includes an active, interactive website and insightful simulations that will remain ongoing through her high school.

Belle Huang

Project Jade

Belle’s Gold Award project, titled “Project Jade,” addressed the issue of mental health disparities in AsianAmerican communities by hosting mental health workshops, creating and giving presentations on awareness and programs for AAPI youth, and researching and providing resources to impoverished communities in Cambodia.

Julia Huffstutter

Safety in the Entertainment Unit

Julia’s Gold Award project, titled “Safety in the Entertainment Unit,” made an impact on her community by creating safer conditions for the members of the band and color guard at her high school. She taught student members important first aid tips and information preparing them in the event of an emergency. She also organized the dangerously cluttered outdoor storage area where the members stored props for shows and items for various fundraising events.

Aditi Iyer

Wellness Center Mental Health Awareness

Aditi’s Gold Award project, titled “Wellness Center Mental Health Awareness,” addressed the issue of youth mental health by creating a virtual database complete with mental health resources that can be easily accessed by the entire school community. She aimed to reduce the stigma surrounding seeking help, and worked with the campus Wellness Center to provide access to multiple tip lines, advice on how to respond to bullying, healthy eating charts, stress relief exercises, and so much more. Students can easily make appointments with counselors and receive reminders about upcoming wellness events taking place on campus, providing a great opportunity for students to balance mental health with academics, and spread awareness on how to seek help.

2026 GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARDEES

Olivia Jaramillo

Threads of Hope: Supporting Migrant Farm Working Families

Olivia’s Gold Award project, titled “Threads of Hope: Supporting Migrant Farm Working Families,” made an impact on her community by creating a system to collect and redistribute clothing to migrant farmworker families. She organized clothing drives using school lost and found items and community donations, ensuring that essential clothing reached families who often lack access to basic resources. Through presentations and newsletters, she also educated community members about clothing waste and the challenges farmworker families face, encouraging ongoing community involvement.

Chloe Jeng

Safe Sports, Strong Athletes

Chloe’s Gold Award project, titled “Safe Sports, Strong Athletes,” addressed the issue of athlete safety and the lack of awareness around misconduct in sports. She created a campaign to educate athletes, coaches, and parents on how to recognize, prevent, and report unsafe behaviors in athletic environments. Through outreach, resources, and awareness efforts, she worked to promote safer and more inclusive sports spaces where all athletes feel protected and supported.

Leatha Joyner

The Lele Times

Leatha’s Gold Award project, “The Lele Times,” made an impact in her community by giving insight on the entertainment industry in both the arts and business aspect. She hosted events and shared interviews throughout the summer with guests like Leah Sava Jeffries from “The Percy Jackson Series,” Jonah Platt from “Wicked” on Broadway, and Milauna Jackson from Tyler Perry’s “Six Triple Eight!” Her project goal was to inspire those who aspire to be in entertainment!

Meghna Kamath

Pawsome Pantry

Meghna’s Gold Award project, titled “Pawsome Pantry,” addressed the issue of homeless animals not receiving proper nutrition by creating a pantry free of cost and providing nutritious meals for dogs and cats in her community. This pantry was welcoming to all, as everyone could use a little help sometimes, and was purely run off of donations.

Lucy Kaplan

Inspiring Girls in STEM

Lucy’s Gold Award project, titled “Inspiring Girls in STEM,” made an impact on her community by educating and providing resources for girls to learn STEM topics and pursue science and math professionally.

Leona Khachatourian

Program Enhancement for Student Wellness Services Food Pantry

Leona’s Gold Award project, titled “Program Enhancement for Student Wellness Services Food Pantry,” addressed the issue of the inventory consistency in the Student Wellness Services department food pantry that serves families struggling with food insecurity. Leona created educational materials for donors, garnering new community partners, and adding resources for the department. The instructional donation guide pamphlet created is available on the GUSD website, making the information accessible to the public. Leona also produced a video for the department to share with community partners, highlighting their services and the need for ongoing support. As a result, Leona successfully connected the department with three community partners who have committed to continue working with the pantry.

Ella Kim

Pals for Seniors

Ella’s Gold Award project, titled “Pals for Seniors,” addressed the issue of social isolation and cognitive decline amongst the elderly demographic by conducting free art therapy workshops for local senior centers online and in-person. Additionally, she created a website with step-by-step instructions on art therapy activities that could be practiced at home, which promoted mental wellness, memory, and emotional health. Lastly, she created and distributed a zine project, called the “Aurelia Project,” and partnered with the nonprofit organization, SOS Foundation, to showcase the artwork made in her workshops to her greater community.

Faith Kim

From Heart to Harmony

Faith’s Gold Award project, titled “From Heart to Harmony,” addressed the issue of cross-cultural misunderstanding and discrimination against Chinese communities, intensified during the COVID-19 pandemic, by creating a cultural immersion experience for youth. She brought together children from Wuhan, China and Chinese American students in Los Angeles to participate in a camp that explored cultural identity through shared experiences and visits to local landmarks. Through music education, including teaching the ukulele, her project fostered empathy, self-expression, and meaningful connection across cultures.

Isabel Kim

OIC Online Library

Isabel’s Gold Award project, “OIC Online Library,” made an impact by creating a mobile and digital library for the Luskin’s orthopedic institute for children.

Brielle Kinigstein

Young Women’s Introduction Into Film Making

Brielle’s Gold Award project, titled “Young Women’s Introduction Into Film Making,” aimed to address the underrepresentation of women in the film industry and the lack of opportunities in filmmaking available to many girls in the Los Angeles area. Brielle created a website with four in-depth tutorials on filmmaking. Brielle developed and taught five in-person workshops to younger Girl Scout troops, reaching a total of 48 girls. Brielle also held a film festival where young female filmmakers were able to showcase their work and be interviewed about their experience with filmmaking.

Katherine Kohn

PINKtober

Kate’s Gold Award project, titled “PINKtober,” made an impact on her community by raising awareness about breast cancer and its effects. With the guidance of Dr. Aritro Nath of the Breast Cancer Research Team at City of Hope, she organized an awareness walk with over 300 participants from her school. She also shared 800 pink ribbons with breast cancer facts, provided educational pamphlets to her community, and presented her research and findings to students in a lowincome community. Through these efforts, she advanced early detection, health advocacy, and informed decisionmaking among young women.

Melanie Larrimore

ASL Videos for Students

Melanie’s Gold Award project, titled “ASL Videos for Students,” made an impact on her community by introducing an easy language to learn that can be very useful in the world. Kids can learn how to communicate with deaf or hard-of-hearing people by using their own language and not having to rely on lip reading or writing down what they are going to say. Also, it gave them a way to express themselves to their peers without speaking and by using their bodies.

2026 GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARDEES

Claire Lee

Calm Down Kits

Claire’s project titled, “Calm Down Kits,” made an impact by developing and implementing targeted strategies and tools to support special needs students during times of distress. This included creating calming resources, teaching self-regulation techniques, and providing training for volunteers and caregivers to better understand and respond to students’ needs in challenging moments.

Eden Lee

Book Nook Fest

Eden’s Gold Award project, titled “Book Nook Fest,” made an impact on her community by collecting hundreds of books and distributing them to children with limited access to reading materials. She organized book drives to gather a wide range of stories for kids of all ages. Through this project, Eden helped promote literacy, foster a love of reading, and ensure that more children had books of their own to enjoy.

Kasey Lee

Keeping Memories: Dementia

Awareness and Story Preservation

Kasey’s Gold Award project, titled “Keeping Memories: Dementia Awareness and Story Preservation,” made an impact on her community by bridging generational divides and teaching members of all ages the importance of logging memories. From bringing teenage volunteers to senior homes to fill out custom memory boxes and decorate photo frames with residents; creating family scrapbooks with younger Girl Scouts; and producing a podcast video with interviews from grandparents and advice from dementia caretakers, “Keeping Memories” is a wide-reaching and impactful project. Ultimately, the project helped provide comfort for families of those with dementia, and gave senior citizens an opportunity to share their meaningful life stories.

Reese Lieser

Richardson Rattlesnake Mural

Reese’s project titled, “Richardson Rattlesnake Mural,” made an impact on the community by hosting a day of kindness at Richardson Middle School for 600 students to encourage kindness, social interaction and improve wellbeing. She posted mental health and wellness flyers with resources use if students were struggling. She also provided resources for the school to continue the kindness program annually for students.

Jamie Long

Womens Rights Awareness Mural/ Workshops

Jamie’s Gold Award project, titled “Women’s Rights Awareness Mural/ Workshops,” addressed the issue of women’s inequality in STEM fields through multiple women’s rights workshops, focusing on the inequality and lack of opportunities for women in STEM. In addition to these workshops given to teen girls, Jamie formed a team to paint a mural representing women in various jobs in a low income community center.

Iris Loong

Happy Mind, Happy Life

Iris’s Gold Award project, titled “Happy Mind, Happy Life,” made an impact on her community by empowering kids of homeless families to take control of their own emotional wellness through a series of mental health workshops. To carry out this project, Iris collaborated with Door of Hope, an organization that provides transitional homes for homeless families to stay while the families get back on their feet. At the workshops, Iris taught the children about emotions, how to handle stress, and the use of wellness journals.

Stacy Lugo

Above the Stigma: Supporting Neurodivergent Students for Academic Success

Stacy’s Gold Award project, titled “Above the Stigma: Supporting Neurodivergent Students for Academic Success,” addresses the issue of lack of support for neurodivergent students in the education system by creating a website that provides resources and information to neurodivergent students and their parents. The project emphasized the barriers neurodivergent students face and advocated for increased awareness, support, and accommodations to help them achieve academic success.

Kate Ly

Friendships Forever: The Buddy Bench

Kate’s Gold Award project, titled “Friendships Forever: The Buddy Bench,” made an impact on her community by creating a safe space to build friendships between young students at Alpha Shen Preschool. Verbal communication is an important lesson to learn so students do not resort to yelling, crying, or hurting others when trying to convey their message. The Buddy Bench is a safe space to share and communicate with friends or a trusted adult whenever a student wants or needs to.

Sabina Magerramova

Inside Out: Mental Health Wellness & Stress Awareness

Sabina’s Gold Award project, titled “Inside Out: Mental Health Wellness & Stress Awareness,” addressed stress and mental health challenges among youth by providing educational workshops, a booklet, website, and accessible resources. The project focused on teaching practical coping strategies and increasing awareness of how stress affects mental well-being. It empowered youth to better understand their emotions and build healthy habits for managing stress in their daily lives!

Carolina Marinovich

GLAMH (Girls Learning About Mental Health)

Carolina’s Gold Award project, titled “GLAMH (Girls Learning About Mental Health),” addressed the issue of mental health through creating a curriculum that covered seven different chapters containing information on different modern day mental health issues. The seven chapters addressed issues regarding overall mental health, emotions, social media, self image, friendship, interpersonal relationships, and self love. The curriculum was then taught at Families Forward Learning Center in Pasadena to girls in middle school, and Carolina demonstrated how GLAMH’s topics affect their mental health and how the girls can use beneficial mental health practices in order to have wellrounded middle and high school experiences.

Julia Marriott

Gaga Ball for Friendship, Fun, and Fitness!

Julia’s Gold Award project, “Gaga Ball for Friendship, Fun, and Fitness,” made an impact on her community when she built a gaga ball arena for a local elementary school with a need for outdoor recreational activities, and then taught over 700 students the importance of getting off their screens, being outside, and moving their bodies.

Audrey Martin

Combatting Childhood Obesity/ Wellness issues with a Low Ropes Course

Audrey’s Gold Award project, titled “Combatting Childhood Obesity/ Wellness Issues with a Low Ropes Course,” addressed the issue of childhood obesity. Audrey built a low ropes course at the Girl Scout property in Montrose. Future girls will be able to get some exercise while at Montrose instead of just sitting around during breaks from programming. Audrey also taught five workshop sessions on the sugar content of some of our favorite drinks and snacks, and shared with the girls and leaders that they should read the labels to identify the sugar substitutes in order to be the best version of themselves.

2026 GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARDEES

Aalyah Martinez

Project Drip Drip

Aalyah’s Gold Award project, titled “Project Drip Drip,” addressed water inequality in her under-resourced community. The project established the first indoor refillable water station in the second largest park in South East Los Angeles. Her project provided equitable access to water, inspired sustainable water practices, and hydrated thousands. “Project Drip Drip” reminds us that drip by drip, we can all make a difference. .

Amber Mase

Let’s Build Each Other

Amber’s Gold Award project, titled “Let’s Build Each Other,” made an impact on her community by bringing mental health awareness to teens displaced by the recent LA wildfires. Amber partnered with DoorOfHope and hosted workshops where she taught kids about mental health disorders, walked them through coping mechanisms, and created a safe space to share and heal. Her presentation sprouted into hours of genuine connections, deep conversations, and real stories of struggle. She also created a website where anyone can find support and information on mental health, causes, symptoms, coping mechanisms, and personal anecdotes.

Natalia Mata

Girl Scout Uniform Preservation

Natalia’s Gold Award project, titled “Girl Scout Uniform Preservation,” made an impact on her community by sewing and donating over 100 garment bags to the Girl Scout Heritage Committee. These garment bags were used to store dozens of historic Girl Scout uniforms. Through this, she was able to help save Girl Scout history and pass on sewing skills to other Girl Scouts.

Alexis Matino

Our Journey in Patches

Alexis’s Gold Award project, titled “Our Journey in Patches,” addressed the issue of patches being stored in bins and not being celebrated as the culture and history of Girl Scouts. This was solved by creating a visual showcase of patches, including historical ones, for others to enjoy and reduce the storage issue for Girl Scouts.

Amanda McReynolds

Pets First

Amanda’s Gold Award project, titled “Pets First,” made an impact on her community by creating a memorial space where individuals could mourn the loss of their pets and grieve together. In addition, the project provided an educational environment for community members to learn more about proper pet care. Through a community fair, Amanda not only increased awareness and understanding of pet ownership, but also gave local pet businesses the opportunity to promote their services, helping bridge gaps in misinformation surrounding pet care.

Carley Medina

Cancer Support Snack Cart

Carley’s Gold Award project, titled “Cancer Support Snack Cart,” made an impact on her community by building a mobile cart for the Cancer Support Community South Bay. The cart created a sustainable gathering space for individuals and their families facing a cancer diagnosis where they can connect after educational workshops, lifestyle classes, and support groups. Carley planned, designed, and built the cart specifically for their space and also created instructional YouTube videos and inperson workshops instructing girls how to use power tools.

Ella Malia Mendoza

Small Things Make a Big Impact

Ella’s Gold Award project, titled “Small Things Make a Big Impact,” addressed the issue of homeless people in adult clinics who do not have access to basic necessities by forming sock, sweater, and diaper drives to friends, families, and her fellow troop to help support the patients at the Joshua House located in Downtown Skid Row. Ella also put together 70 hygiene kits and 60 blankets (using a Gold Award workshop as funding to purchase the materials for these items) and eventually transported the purchased and donated items to the Joshua House, organizing the storage units there to both clean and place these essentials. Finally, with the help of her project advisor, a social worker at the clinic, Ella created a resource binder featuring lists of hotlines, organizations that can donate to the Joshua House, a template donation letter she created, and an outline of how she created her previous donation drives.

Faye Meza

Highland’s Golden Resource Room

Faye’s Gold Award project, titled “Highland’s Golden Resource Room,” made an impact on her community by providing access to supplies and the foundation needed for efficiency and sustainability at a local preschool. She recognized the wasted space in the school and decided to use it for the benefit of both teachers and students. Through persistence and dedication, the development and success of these students have been impacted.

Annabelle Miller

Scout the Scam

Annabelle’s Gold Award project, titled “Scout the Scam,” made an impact on her community by making a game to teach senior citizens how to identify AI images and phishing scams, and how protect themselves online.

Helene Miller

Connecting the Community

Helene’s Gold Award project, titled “Connecting the Community,” addressed the issue of homelessness in Los Angeles by recruiting volunteers to both create and distribute care packages to people experiencing homelessness. Through her project, she wanted to emphasize the importance of human connection. This reminded those involved in the project that everyone is deserving of kindness, dignity, and respect, no matter what area of life one is in.

Hailey Montano

Garden to Table

Hailey’s Gold Award project, “Garden to Table,” strengthened her community by hosting intergenerational workshops where teens and adults collaborated with local partners. These sessions focused on cultivating native herbs and vegetables to promote self-sustainability and ecological awareness. By teaching participants how to transform these harvests into healthy recipes, she provided the lasting skills necessary for longterm nutritional independence.

Emily Moore

Silver Surfers Tech Club: Helping Seniors Navigate the Digital World

Emily’s Gold Award project, titled “Silver Surfers Tech Club: Helping Seniors Navigate the Digital World,” made an impact on her community by creating a sustainable program that improves digital literacy among senior citizens. Through partnerships with San Dimas High School and the San Dimas Senior Center, the project provided handson workshops where seniors learned essential technology skills. As a result, participants gained confidence, independence, and improved access to digital tools needed for daily life.

2026 GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARDEES

Gianna Moreno

Helping A Small Hand

Gianna’s Gold Award project, titled “Helping A Small Hand,” made an impact on the community by helping the Ronald McDonald House (RMDH). Gianna made and donated cans, snack, and toiletry kits for families, cooked lunch and dinner, and hosted movie nights.

Astha Munot

Eco Expressions

Astha’s Gold Award project, titled “Eco Expressions,” made an impact on her community by transforming walls at Victor Elementary into an abstract, vibrant mural centered on environmental sustainability and climate awareness. Through an educational curriculum, students learned about global environmental challenges—such as water scarcity, air pollution, land degradation, and biodiversity loss—and explored how action can create change. The mural was brought to life by volunteers, ensuring a lasting visual reminder that encourages environmental awareness and sustainable thinking within the school community.

Elle Murchie

Helping with Healing: A Girl Scout Gold Award

Elle’s Gold Award project, titled “Helping with Healing: A Girl Scout Gold Award,” made an impact on her community by creating and delivering 60 handmade chemotherapy care bags filled with comfort items and inspirational notes to patients at City of Hope. Each bag was thoughtfully designed for men and women and included helpful resources on hair loss and scalp cooling. Elle also taught others this skill through sewing workshops and an online tutorial to extend the projects impact.

Leila Nafarrete

First Impressions

Leila’s project titled, “First Impressions,” made an impact on the community by hosting workshops providing education to college bound Students addressing the issue of violence on college campuses. She also created an informative resource that covers college safety and is available to community students.

Skylar Nakano

Ocean

Marine Awareness

Skylar’s Gold Award project, titled “Ocean Marine Awareness,” addressed the issue of climate change and pollution by educating the public with workshops and social media.

Natalia Nelson

A Girl’s Guide to Space

Natalia’s Gold Award project, titled “A Girl’s Guide to Space,” made an impact on her community by educating girls on space and astrophysics. She created a multifaceted curriculum covering parachutes, rocketry, and more. She held interactive workshops, led presentations, and interviewed women in the industry, overall encouraging young girls to break the stereotype.

Kaileen Neuberger

Deterring Depression

Kaileen’s project titled, “Deterring Depression,” made an impact on the community by creating educational pamphlets of resources, hosted workshops for teens on mental health topics, and posted mental health information on social media.

Chloe Ng

A Sustainable Earth

Chloe’s Gold Award project, titled “A Sustainable Earth,” made an impact by ensuring that future generations have a healthy and thriving planet. By understanding sustainable practices, our community will be able protect natural resources and reduce environmental harm.

Hannah Ng

RunniNG Towards Gold

Hannah’s Gold Award project, “RunniNG Towards Gold,” made an impact on her community by helping the track and field coach focus her time more efficiently and try to prevent stress before it occurs. Something that might cause stress would be reteaching the information numerous times. To help with this, she created different videos to help new managers understand the different duties (such as raking the sand pit, setting up the blocks, completing/filling out fundraising forms, etc.) that they would have to do during the seasons.

Keyara Noel

Pawsitive Impact

Keyara’s Gold Award project, titled “Pawsitive Impact,” addressed the issue of the large and continuous expansion of the free roaming cat population and number of euthanized cats in the community. To do so, Keyara’s project aimed to spread awareness about the importance of spaying and neutering cats in the neighborhood by creating an online pamphlet and hosting an awareness event at one of the local parks in Lakewood.

Hope Norris

Spreading Awareness About Sports Injury and Lacrosse

Hope’s Gold Award project, titled “Spreading Awareness About Sports Injury and Lacrosse,” made an impact on her community by teaching elementary school students and high school lacrosse athletes about common sports injuries and hosting lacrosse clinics. Her project addressed the issues of under representation of lacrosse and the undervalue of athletic injury prevention by teaching others skills of the sport and techniques that reduce the chances of injury.

Hannah Noser

Changing the Game: For Girls and Women in

Sports

Hannah’s Gold Award project, titled “Changing the Game: For Girls and Women in Sports,” made an impact on her community by promoting physical health maintenance and increasing awareness of Osgood-Schlatter Disease. Inspired by her own experience as an athlete, she wanted to help her younger sisters and others avoid facing similar challenges. She accomplished this by hosting a series of educational workshops, developing informational posters, creating an additional resource guide, producing a video presentation, and authoring an easy-to-read pamphlet for children about Osgood-Schlatter Disease that orthopedic surgeons can distribute to patients experiencing knee pain.

Megan Ong

Folding Kindness

Megan’s Gold Award project, titled “Folding Kindness,” made an impact on her community by establishing and leading a community service club that collaborated with multiple school organizations to support a local nursing home. Megan directed projects such as organizing creative origami workshops, creating personalized cards, and organizing a performance for residents and students. This was done in order to show our appreciation to our local seniors to thank them for all their service they have done to build our amazing community.

2026 GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARDEES

Jocelyn Ono

Unspoken Obstacles: The Intersection of Identity and Mental Health

Jocelyn’s Gold Award project, titled “Unspoken Obstacles: The Intersection of Identity and Mental Health,” made an impact on her community by addressing the bias within mental health diagnosis that disadvantages minority groups. She researched the differences in symptoms and care opportunities for minor groups and compiled it into a presentation aimed toward her high school community.

Jiya Pai

Hobby-Initiating Kits for Foster Children

Jiya’s Gold Award project, titled “HobbyInitiating Kits for Foster Children,” made an impact on her community by donating kits to the Assistance League of Los Angeles. Jiya came in with a goal: to give foster children the resources to explore and pursue hobbies. She donated STEM, journaling, scrapbooking, and art kits to the league. Ultimately, she led a team, delivered a speech at the Assistance League Hollywood headquarters, and sold out of her kits within a week.

Lexi Pang

Senior Strength

Lexi’s Gold Award project, titled “Senior Strength,” made an impact on her community by creating fun, engaging jazz dance classes and instructional YouTube videos, and donating exercise equipment for senior citizens. Through these classes, Lexi helped them stay active and boost both their physical and mental well-being. By sharing her love for dance, she created a welcoming space filled with smiles, laughter, and connection—leaving a lasting impression on everyone she touched.

Ava Paridari

Garden Guardians

Ava’s Gold Award project, titled “Garden Guardians,” made an impact on her community by revitalizing the garden at the Guadalupe Center CYO to grow fresh, organic produce, including various vegetables and herbs, for their food bank. She planted low-maintenance vegetables and established a sustainable watering and composted soil system for ongoing harvests. She also held educational environmental art and literacy classes where children painted pots, learned about beneficial garden insects, and planted seeds to take home.

Madeline Park

Weaving Wellness

Madeline’s Gold Award project, titled “Weaving Wellness,” made an impact on her community by reducing student stress through crochet and creative connection. Through partnering with Sip and Stitch, leading a school crochet club, and organizing workshops, Madeline created a welcoming space that promoted mindfulness and peer support. She also donated handmade blankets to disaster victims and developed sustainable materials so the project could continue benefiting others beyond her involvement.

Anya Patel

Project Sunshine

Anya’s Gold Award project, titled “Project Sunshine,” addressed the issue of sun safety among teenagers by creating a community-based initiative in Los Angeles. She partnered with Dr. Samantha Lucero-Daga from Ananya Aesthetics and Dr. Swati Rastogi from Olde Orchard Pediatric Dentistry to translate medical information into clear, practical advice for teenagers, including UV radiation, the three-finger rule for sunscreen application, and the role of sun exposure in acne and hyperpigmentation. She collaborated with Polytechnic School in Pasadena, Crowell Public Library in San Marino, and Nakul Dev Mahajan Studios in Artesia to host educational sessions and distribute generously donated Supergoop sunscreen to over 600 high school students.

Sofia Payan-Siegrist

Preserving the Past for the Future

Sofia’s Gold Award project, “Preserving the Past for the Future,” made an impact on her community by archiving important Girl Scout items dating back to the early 1900s in her local heritage committee. This collection included a variety of accessories such as hats, purses, ties, scarves, and more. Additionally, Sofia also created a video that will be used to guide future archivists and volunteers.

Lilli Perner

Peak Performance Mindfulness

Lilli’s Gold Award project, titled “Peak Performance Mindfulness,” addressed the issue of injury prevention and athletic burnout in teens by creating a website with all the tools and resources necessary for athletes to stay healthy, as well as hosting in-person workshops where athletes could learn how to properly take care of their bodies and minds. She met with three different specialists to address the main issues of physical injuries, mental barriers, and nutritional focus to provide athletes with a holistic approach to their sports and a guide to remaining injury free and motivated to be their best selves.

Jayde Petrella

Sponsor a Paw

Jayde’s Gold Award project, titled “Sponsor a Paw,” addressed the issue of the amount of dogs in shelters that not only need adopting, but also fostering and sponsoring. It also provided information on having your animals ready for emergencies like fire evacuation.

Kalea Poon

CPR

Awareness Campaign

Kalea’s Gold Award project, titled “CPR Awareness Campaign,” made an impact on her community by creating educational resources that teach CPR to elementary students and the community. Through outreach and workshops, she helped increase awareness about life-saving emergency skills. By providing accessible and multilingual information, Kalea’s project empowers individuals to respond confidently in critical situations.

Nysha Prasad

Mind Matters

Lauren’s Gold Award project, Nysha’s Gold Award project, titled “Mind Matters,” addressed the issue of mental health stigma by hosting school-based workshops, maintaining a peer-written blog, and producing a podcast featuring professionals in the social work field. The project also received grant funding to assemble and distribute over 300 mental health care kits to underserved students across the greater Los Angeles area.

Sijin Qu

Music Therapy for Senior Home

Sijin’s Gold Award project, titled “Music Therapy for Senior Home,” made an impact on her community by enhancing the emotional well-being and social connectedness of senior home residents at Park Vista through meaningful musical experiences. By using carefully selected music to evoke nostalgia, joy, and relaxation, the project helped reduce boredom, loneliness, and isolation while uplifting residents’ moods and encouraging greater engagement in daily life. Additionally, by involving younger volunteers and creating a website to support outreach, the initiative fostered intergenerational bonds and strengthened a sense of community.

2026 GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARDEES

Summer Quistgaard

Empowering Youth Expression Through Speech and Debate

Summer’s Gold Award project, titled “Empowering Youth Expression Through Speech and Debate,” made an impact on her community by creating a comprehensive speech-based curriculum employed at workshops and published on a website for all those seeking a confident, articulate voice. Especially in our increasingly globalized world, the ability to express oneself is invaluable. Rising from speech therapy to speech champion herself, Summer not only advocates for others using her voice, but also equips young kids with powerful speaking tools to leave an irreversible impact wherever they go in life.

Sofia Ramos

Preventing Injuries

Sofia’s Gold Award project, “Preventing Injuries,” made a meaningful impact on her community by reaching over 100 athletes, K–12 students, and adults through educational presentations. She partnered with AYSO and local coaches to share her message and promote injury prevention awareness throughout the community.

Mailani Ramos-Platt

Adapting Tennis Exercises for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

Mailani’s Gold Award project, titled “Adapting Tennis for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy,” addressed the issue of a lack of adaptive sports by working with a physical therapist and a DMD organization to create a tennis curriculum and clinic that is friendly to kids with Duchenne.

Sheridan Reha

The Little Sprouts Garden Initiative

Sheridan’s Gold Award project, titled “The Little Sprouts Garden Initiative,” made an impact on her community by creating a garden for her synagogue and teaching a class to children K-7 on environmental sustainability. She helped build and care for the garden so the kids could learn how to grow their own plants. She also taught simple ways to protect the environment in their everyday lives while making each class fun.

Edie Remender

Be

Society: My Journey

Edie’s Gold Award project, titled “Be Society: My Journey,” addressed the issue of emotional isolation and loss of personal voice among pediatric patients by creating a DIY storytelling media kit for children experiencing long hospital stays. The kit provides tools for journaling, digital storytelling, and creative expression to help patients process their experiences and stay connected to others. This sustainable project empowers young patients while offering hospitals a replicable program that can continue to support families beyond Edie’s direct involvement.

Kelsey Remolino

Fresh Finds

Kelsey’s Gold Award project, titled “Fresh Finds,” made an impact on her community by repurposing a shed at J.H. Hull Middle School into a thrift shop where students can get free clothing and personal hygiene items in a welcoming environment. Everyone has access to all items in the store, regardless of their financial situation, and can shop without social pressure. This space helped foster a sense of community and togetherness.

Sophia Rodriguez

Empower Women and Children to a

Better Future

Sophia’s Gold Award project, titled “Empower Women and Children to a Better Future,” made an impact on their community by helping support women and their children in times of need. She helped cook meals at the Alexandria House, taught art classes at the daycare, and held multiple drives to donate supplies. By helping at the house, she was able to contribute to the community and make a difference with her short time there.

Anny Romero

Seeds of Hope

Anny’s Gold Award project, titled “Seeds of Hope,” made an impact on her community by hosting workshops at family homeless shelters, where they built friendships as they did crafts and activities and practiced hoping for a better future.

Mia Rubalcava

Mindful Habits, Mindful Health

Mia’s Gold Award project, titled “Mindful Habits, Mindful Health,” made an impact on her community by providing middle school and high school students with strategies to reduce their academic stress. She created a curriculum with various study strategies, test-taking strategies, and mindset tips that she taught with a team at in-person workshops. She also brought her lessons online on various social media platforms to ensure students had access to her advice.

Andrea Ruiz

Bright Eyes STEM Education

Andrea’s Gold Award project, titled “Bright Eyes STEM Education,” made an impact on her community by making an accessible STEM curriculum for the community, mainly targeting elementary school kids. She visited San Jose St. Elementary and hosted workshops with the children, allowing them to play interactive games that challenged their minds and use teamwork. An informational YouTube channel was also made and promoted locally to educate the community and a larger audience online.

Jade Sandoval

Stretch to Success

Jade’s Gold Award project, titled “Stretch to Success,” made an impact on her community by teaching children proper warm-up techniques before physical activities. She educated students on the importance of stretching, hydration, and body care to prevent injuries. Her project provided lasting resources, including handouts and guides, to help children continue healthy practices beyond the program.

Brooke Santos

Petals with a Purpose

Brooke’s Gold Award project, titled “Petals with a Purpose,” addressed the issue of immunocomprised hospital patients being unable to receive fresh flower bouquets by crocheting 330+ crochet flowers for sustainable flower bouquets. These crochet flowers address the environmental impact of picking fresh flowers while also acting as a sign of hope and resilience for those receiving chemotherapy and any immunocompromised hospital patient.

2026 GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARDEES

Brynn Santos

Caps for Chemo

Brynn’s Gold Award project, titled “Caps for Chemo,” made an impact on her community by creating head coverings for patients in Cedars-Sinai oncology floor, as well as creating resources for caps to be replicated for other cancer patients. Her project is dedicated to raising awareness to chemotherapy-induced hair loss impacting cancer patients, and particularly women, as well as supporting patients in the difficult, strenuous treatment process.

Lexi Santos

Grub For Paws: Feeding Man’s Best Friend

Lexi’s Gold Award project titled, “Grub for Paws: Feeding Man’s Best Friend,” addressed the issue of the cost of living increasing, which is leading to an increase of homelessness. With people facing financial hardships, they’ve also been experiencing a lack of food. Some homeless people have four-legged companions that are also needing to be fed. Lexi created a sustainable partnership with a local food bank and was able to successfully secure food.

Karissa Sasaki

Tracks of Knowlege

Karissa’s Gold Award project, titled “Tracks of Knowledge,” made an impact on her community by transforming a dull, colorless kindergarten playground into a bright and engaging learning space. She created an interactive painted tricycle track and hopscotch that helps kindergarteners learn their ABCs, 123s, and shapes while encouraging fun active play. The project met its goals by providing an accessible, sustainable learning environment that supports teachers in delivering lessons and promotes positive attitudes toward learning!

Sienna Schneider

Breathe Easy:

Raising Lung Cancer

Awareness

Sienna’s Gold Award project, “Breathe Easy: Raising Lung Cancer Awareness,” made an impact on her community by educating youth and underserved populations about the connection between air pollution, wildfire smoke, and lung cancer. Through her book “Little Lungs, Big Job,” now in circulation in the Los Angeles Public Library system, her brochures distributed during weekly grocery outreach for the unhoused at St Joseph’s Center, her website shared by multiple nonprofits, and interactive workshops in partnership with the Elks Lodge, she helped increase awareness of lung health and ways to reduce exposure to poor air quality. Inspired by her grandfather who passed from lung cancer despite never smoking, her project empowered community members to better understand the risks, seek early detection if applicable, start important conversations, and take steps to protect their health.

Evelyn Schulz

Planting the Seeds for Better Stress Management

Evelyn’s Gold Award project, titled “Planting the Seeds for Better Stress Management,” addressed the issue of high levels of stress in teenagers at school by hosting student workshops on positive habits and the stressrelieving benefits of gardening. She also established a native plant garden at her school, designed and built planters, and gathered various native wildflowers and plants. The garden is now a place where students can de-stress among wildflowers, hummingbirds, and butterflies.

Clover Serio

North West Izay Neighborhood Watch

Clover’s Gold Award project titled, “North West Izay Neighborhood Watch,” made an impact on her community by helping people be safer. She learned self-defense moves from a Krav Maga black belt and taught them to other Girl Scouts. She worked with a police officer to learn how to start a Neighborhood Watch and gathered her neighbors to start it, and keeps everyone connected on the Facebook Group she created to support the Watch.

Arianna Shamo

Game on Game Strong, – Protecting Female Athletes

Arianna’s Gold Award project, titled “Game on Game Strong, – Protecting Female Athletes,” addressed the lack of injury-prevention education designed specifically for teenage female athletes. In a sports culture where girls are often trained using male-based standards, Arianna interviewed medical professionals and gathered research to create a female-focused injury-prevention manual and short educational videos. She also organized and led a handson panel for student athletes and athletic training staff, equipping them with practical tools to train smarter, listen to their bodies, and reduce preventable injuries. In addition, Arianna created and distributed injury-prevention bags to over 100 young athletes, providing them with tools they could use immediately and share with teammates and coaches.

Syeira Shew

Operation Beyond a Meal

Syeira’s Gold Award project, titled “Operation Beyond a Meal,” addressed issues affecting unhoused individuals by raising awareness about the lack of access to basic hygiene necessities and providing essential care supplies. The project organized donation drives and outreach initiatives to provide essential items such as toothbrush kits, hygiene products, and other necessities that promote health and confidence. It also utilized social media platforms to spread awareness about overlooked issues within the homeless community, such as period poverty and stigma regarding asking for help.

Camryn Shimazaki

Mapping Out America

Camryn’s Gold Award project, titled “Mapping Out America,” made an impact on her community by improving students’ understanding of U.S. geography. She painted a U.S. map on her local elementary school’s blacktop as well as provided engaging games and lesson plans that related to the map.

Jamie Shiuan

Senior Citizens and Technology

Jamie’s Gold Award project, titled “Senior Citizens and Technology,” made an impact on her community by enhancing one of the senior citizen programs at the Arcadia Community Center. She created and designed six unique informational presentations and pamphlets to raise awareness and build confidence among seniors. Through these sessions, she taught key device features, safe internet practices, and how to recognize and avoid scams, while also providing one-on-one support to ensure participants felt comfortable and capable of using technology safely.

Siena Simms

The Medicine Of Music

Siena’s project titled, “The Medicine of Music,” made an impact on the community by hosting workshops that educated parents on the importance and benefits of music therapy, and provided free music therapy to attendees. Additionally, she provided digital and physical resources for free music therapy, which in turn allowed the participants to have clear examples of what they could do to help the children in a therapeutic way.

Anastacia Singletary

The Love that Stays - Living with Grief and Loss

Anastacia’s Gold Award project, titled “The Love That Stays – Living with Grief and Loss,” addressed the issue of the lack of accessible grief education and emotional support for children experiencing loss by creating a series of age-appropriate children’s books paired with a four-week curriculum designed to help children understand grief and loss by developing healthy coping strategies. By combining storytelling with guided activities and reflection, the project helped to provide a safe and supportive space for children to process their emotions and learn that even though they are sad, the love that they felt stays with them.

2026 GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARDEES

Juliette Smith

Photo Pals

Juliette’s Gold Award project, titled “Photo Pals,” made an impact on her community by allowing hospitalized children to maintain family connections during their stay. The program also fostered new relationships between patients and Juliette’s Gold Award team through weekly exchanges of photos and messages. Through this project, patients felt less lonely and more connected to the outside world.

Valerie Smith

The Dress Campaign Valerie’s Gold Award project, titled “The Dress Campaign,” addressed the issue of students being unable to attend school dances because of financial issues. The cost of going to a school dance has escalated over the years, so fewer and fewer people have been attending. She partnered with an organization called Cinderella’s Closet, which provides dresses and the school dance experience to those who cannot afford it. She had a dress drive at her high school, working with clubs to collect dresses to donate to the organization. In the end, she collected over 40 dresses.

Phoebe Solomon

Golden Comfort

Phoebe’s Gold Award project, titled “Golden Comfort,” made an impact on her community by designing, sewing and stuffing 250 comfort items with seniors that were given to police officers at the West Los Angeles Police Station, that they give then to anxious, DCFS-involved children. All sewing machines, material, and supplies were then donated to seniors in homeless housing communities on a six-week rotation that continue to make the comfort items for children living in other homeless housing communities.

Aubrey Stagnaro

Extreme Makeover: Trailhead Edition

Aubrey’s Gold Award project, titled “Extreme Makeover: Trailhead Edition,” made an impact on her community by preserving and enhancing the Nancy Hoover Pohl Overlook for the entire community. Partnering with MRCA, her project focused on three core initiatives: maintaining pristine trail conditions through responsible waste management and pet ownership, expanding gathering spaces at the overlook to connect visitors with nature and each other, and installing interpretive signage and native plant identification markers to create an outdoor classroom celebrating the trail’s rich botanical heritage. By addressing these areas, Aubrey has created a stronger sense of community stewardship to ensure this beautiful and educational resource thrives for generations to come.

Summer Stephens

Garden Compost Box

Summer ’s Gold Award project, titled “Garden Compost Box,” made an impact on her community by helping Beazy Farm Animal Sanctuary make compost dirt. Beazy Farms takes in hurt animals. They will make compost dirt to grow their own crops to feed the farm animals.

Madalyn Stone

Fans for All

Madalyn’s Gold Award project, titled “Fans for All,” addressed the issue of fans not being able to watch softball games due to location, work, or health reasons, by providing the local softball league with live streaming cameras. These cameras will enable family and friends to be able to watch games from anywh ere. Madalyn also provided training to the league as well as information to the other sports leagues in the city on how they can start a similar program.

Catherine Strobel

Latvian Community Center Library

Catherine’s Gold Award project, titled “Latvian Community Center Library,” made an impact on her community by creating a space dedicated for reading and learning. The physical library was established in one of the community center’s rooms. Catherine and her volunteers also created a digital catalog so that all 1,000+ books could be easily accessed. In addition, she contacted the community board and secured donations to purchase a computer for the library, allowing books to be checked out efficiently.

Sana Suvarna

Baskets of Hope

Sana’s Gold Award project, titled “Baskets of Hope,” made an impact on her community by providing comfort to families of hospital patients. Through these baskets filled with supportive resources, she was able to help families realize they were not alone through their mental health journey. She believes that everyone needs people to support them, and we should always do our best to give them that reliable community.

Alexa Talbert

Refurbishment of Playhouse at Parents and Children’s Preschool

Alexa’s Gold Award project, titled “Refurbishment of Playhouse at Parents and Children’s Preschool,” made an impact on her community by bringing social development through demonstrated play to children in the community. In addition to completely refurbishing the playhouse, Alexa developed and helped deliver the integrative lessons along with theme weeks that included activities, stories, and imaginative play. Alexa held a community clean up day at the preschool and had a reveal for students and parents showing off the new structure, posters, and toys that help foster socialization through demonstrative play. We know how important early socialization and social skills are to success and learning later in development. Alexa is grateful to introduce a meaningful and fun way for the children in the community to learn this.

Erin Tardibuono

Beyond Talent: Thriving in the Performing Arts Industry

Erin’s Gold Award project, titled “Beyond Talent: Thriving in the Performing Arts Industry,” made an impact on her community by helping young people involved in the arts learn to manage the pressure and challenges of the entertainment industry in healthy and positive ways. Inspired by her own experiences with rejection, strained friendships, competition, anxiety, and disappointment, Erin realized that many young performers face similar challenges. Motivated by this insight, she created this project to share what she learned and to provide guidance and support for others navigating similar challenges in the industry.

Laila Teisan

Santa Monica Elks Lodge Visibility Project

Laila’s Gold Award project, titled “Santa Monica Elks Lodge Visibility Project,” addressed the issue of the Santa Monica Elks Lodge slowly losing awareness within the community. Because of this, people were missing out on all the great things the Elks do. Laila designed and painted a huge mural (400 square foot) on the front wall of the building, choosing bright, bold colors and symbols that represent what the Elks stand for and the community they serve. On the mural, Laila added a large metal QR code that linked directly to the Santa Monica Elks’ main website.She also planned and hosted a public launch event that had the Mayor of Santa Monica, GSGLA CEO Theresa Edy Kiene, high-level Elks Lodge statesmen, and various members of the press attend. Laila also created a presentation, spoke to various Girl Scout groups, and created a website that will live on to keep promoting the SM Elks as well as help future Girl Scouts learn about the Gold Award program.

2026 GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARDEES

Ann Thekkinedath

Project Pollinator

Ann’s Gold Award project, “Project Pollinator,” addressed the issue of the decline in native plants and pollinators by creating and restoring native plant gardens that provide sustainable habitats for local pollinator species. The project combined hands-on environmental action with education by engaging students, volunteers, and community members in planting native species and learning about their ecological importance for pollinators. To extend its impact beyond the gardens themselves, she published an educational children’s workbook that shares practical guidance and knowledge on native plants and pollinators.

Isla Tracy

Remembering Together: A Child’s Journey to Dementia Awarenes

Isla’s Gold Award project, titled “Remembering Together: A Child’s Journey to Dementia Awareness,” addressed the issue of the lack of awareness of dementia. She did this by researching and collecting data and using that information to create a video. This video explained to children what dementia is and how to aid people affected by it. After learning about dementia, the children were able to spend quality time with people affected by it to form further connections with them.

Megan Tran

Miss Cho’s Classroom Book Nook

Megan’s Gold Award Project titled “Miss Cho’s Classroom Book

Nook” has made an impact on the Evergreen Elementary School first grade community by establishing a classroom library. Miss Cho’s classroom was the only one without a library campus wide as she was a new teacher to Evergreen. This library was complete with new bookshelves, over 500 new and gently used books, special colorful cushions, handmade bookmarks for all students and other supplies.

Maya Trivedi

Domestic Violence - Young Children & Family Support Project

Maya’s Gold Award project, titled “Domestic Violence - Young Children & Family Support Project,” made an impact on her community by supporting children and families exposed to domestic violence (DV). Maya’s project offered comfort, encouragement, and a sense of hope through outreach and engagement of the community in creating positive, inspirational note cards and accepting donations such as coloring books, puzzles, and writing pads that were used to create escape kits for children who were forced to leave their homes. Maya partnered with the City of Redondo Beach’s DV Program to help let the victims know, specifically the children, that their community cares for and supports them.

Jacadi Van

Evergreen Leader In Me Asphalt Painting Jacadi’s Gold Award project, titled “Evergreen Leader in Me Asphalt Mural,” made an impact on her community by creating a large-scale mural at Evergreen Elementary that promotes leadership and self-confidence among younger students. The mural incorporates positive messages and visual elements that encourage students to speak up, take initiative, and believe in themselves. By providing a daily visual reminder in a shared school space, the project fosters a more empowering and supportive environment for future generations.

Simone Varela

Reading Railroad

Simone’s Gold Award project, titled “Reading Railroad,” made an impact on her community by giving elementary school students of lower income families access to tutoring resources and after-school help. By founding a club at her school, she recruited volunteers and created a curriculum and lesson plans for the tutoring program. Every Tuesday, Simone and the club volunteers held a one-hour tutoring session in order to help students with their reading, writing, and reading comprehension skills, with the hopes of preparing them for middle school.

Zoe Vokoun

Behind the Story

Zoe’s Gold Award project, titled “Behind the Story,” addressed the issue of female underrepresentation in classroom literature by creating curriculum and resources for teachers to tell the stories of anonymous female authors throughout history. These resources will be used in high school classrooms to teach about lesser known novels written by women along with the stories of female empowerment and resistance behind them.

Ava Waggoner

Beach Pollution Solution

Ava’s Gold Award project, titled “Beach Pollution Solution,” made an impact on her community by raising awareness about pollution in Seal Beach, and inspiring ways for members of the San Gabriel Valley to stop the spread of trash from the San Gabriel River into Seal Beach.

Noelle Warner

A Walk Through Culver City’s Past and Present

Noelle’s Gold Award project, titled “A Walk Through Culver City’s Past and Present,” addressed the issue of a lack of historical education on local sites by creating a walking tour of 15 places in Downtown Culver City that have been preserved and have great historic and cultural roots. She highlighted and discussed their history in tour, booklet, and video form. Additionally, her project highlighted the goals of historical preservation and why understanding history is important for a deeper appreciation of our local landscape, and encouragement of thoughtful development and planning for future generations.

Shelby Weiss

Furry Faces, Forever Homes

Shelby’s project titled, “Furry Faces, Forever Homes,” made an impact by capturing high quality images of cats in the shelters. Then, she created social media posts using the photos to raise more awareness about the animals. She led workshops to help educate the youth about all the different types of animals at shelters, the importance of spaying/neutering pets, and how they can help their local shelters. She also made posters about the importance of fostering bottlefed kittens and created a club at her school to continue to volunteer and support the shelter.

Mia Wertheimer

Homelessness: Building Family Relationships and Resilience Through Art

Mia’s project titled, “Homelessness: Building Family Relationships and Resilience Through Art,” made an impact by establishing an art therapy intervention for the children of Door of Hope. She introduced the power of art therapy in building emotional connection and resilience. Her project was presented at five different Door of Hope sites. Participants had hands-on experience with art therapy using a therapeutic coloring book created specifically for this project. She also created a guide for Door of Hope to continue the art therapy program.

Lilia Werve

Creative Writing Workshop Kit for

Kids

Lilia’s Gold Award project, titled “Creative Writing Workshop Kit for Kids,” made an impact on her community by creating a fun and engaging curriculum that can be used by the Calabasas Library’s creative writing workshop for years to come.

Zoe Whang

KYCCLA Free Art Program

Zoe’s project titled, “KYCCLA Free Art Program,” by addressing the lack of arts education through providing art workshops for KYCCLA summer program. Zoe helped students enhance their creativity and taught them arts and craft skills. She provided art supplies for the art room so that the art workshops could continue in the future.

2026 GIRL SCOUT GOLD AWARDEES

Sophia Winston

Breaking the Silence: Understanding Eating Disorders

Sophia’s Gold Award project, titled “Breaking the Silence: Understanding Eating Disorders,” made an impact by creating a body-positivity campaign that spread awareness to Girl Scouts nationwide through in-person and Zoom presentations. Sophia spoke to over 50 Girl Scouts, giving them a space to not only learn to love and nourish their bodies, but also a space where they could openly talk about how they view themselves. Sophia also created a social media platform and educational pamphlets that she distributed to middle school health offices so that her project impacted adolescences all throughout Los Angeles.

Samantha Wong

The Coding Project

Samantha’s Gold Award project, “The Coding Project,” addressed the issues of disability and language inequality by teaching students with educational barriers at her high school how to code. She created an emoji coding curriculum to teach her peers how to code in basic Hypertext Markup Language (HTML). To keep her curriculum alive, she created a lesson plan guide for teachers to follow for future lessons. In addition, she taught a sister Girl Scout troop how to communicate with peers with disabilities and language barriers through hands-on activities.

Cailyn Wu

Youth Room Restoration

Cailyn’s Gold Award project, titled “Youth Room Restoration,” made an impact on her community by transforming an underutilized space into a welcoming home for her church’s youth group. As a longstanding member of the group herself, Cailyn recognized firsthand the group’s lack of a dedicated and personalized space, hindering the group’s ability to connect and grow. To address this, she converted an existing storage room into a purposeful meeting space that still serves the broader needs of the church. Through this project, Cailyn hopes to leave a lasting impact that supports both current and future members by fostering a sense of community and deepening their faith.

Jamie Wu

Roots of Change - Environmental Science and Sustainability

Jamie’s Gold Award project, titled “Roots of ChangeEnvironmental Science and Sustainability,” made an impact on her community by designing and leading an interactive Earth science and sustainability education program for students at Dana Middle School. She developed a curriculum and led hands-on lessons, activities, and experiments that connected environmental concepts to students’ everyday lives. By making earth science more meaningful and accessible, her project inspired students to understand how their individual choices impact the planet.

Alison Yam

Don’t Be Scared, Be Prepared! Alison’s Gold Award project, “Don’t Be Scared, Be Prepared!,” made an impact on her community by strengthening emergency preparedness skills. She partnered with the South Pasadena Fire Department to teach life-saving skills, organized workshops to help families create emergency plans, distributed go-bags, and founded an Emergency Preparedness Club at her high school to teach teens emergency preparedness skills. Through these efforts, community members gained a deeper understanding of how to prepare for future emergencies.

Rainie Yao

Green Ribbon Award

Rainie’s Gold Award project, titled “Green Ribbon Award,” addressed climate change by strengthening environmentally-focused policies at her local high school and by raising awareness of the significance of individual contributions in mitigating global warming. This was achieved through a newly established gardening club that advocated for native planting, created the school’s first compost bins, and compiled a comprehensive outline of environmental awareness in educational, architectural, and consumption factors on campus. Overall, the school’s community and existing sustainability practices received unprecedented recognition from the statewide Green Ribbon Schools program.

Kayla Yonekawa

Dolores Street Elementary School Garden Beds

Kayla’s Gold Award project, titled “Dolores Street Elementary School Garden Beds,” made an impact to her community by giving the students at Dolores Street Elementary school a hands-on learning experience that will teach them about responsibility for caring for plants and learn about healthy food choices.

Hera Yuan

The World at Your Hands

Hera’s Gold Award project, titled “The World at Your Hands,” made an impact on her community by introducing young children to global cultures through an engaging and accessible children’s book. She shared the project with local groups, including a younger Girl Scout troop, a public library, and a nonprofit serving low-income families. By gifting the book and lesson plan for continued use, she ensured her project would have a lasting impact.

Angheli Leonor Zalameda

Burning Eyebrow

Angheli’s Gold Award project, titled “Burning Eyebrow,” addressed the issue of the harsh reality of poverty in the Philippines and its impact on children’s opportunity for education by spreading awareness about the issue in the United States, promoting empathy, gratitude, and compassion among today’s youth. This was accomplished through extensive research culminating in the writing and publishing of an eponymous realistic fiction novel and workbook, “Burning Eyebrow.” To ensure the spread of the important message of awareness, 17 book launch events were hosted in schools, public libraries, and a Girl Scout camp and 200 free copies were distributed, inspiring attendees young and old to be advocates for the impoverished and the human right of education and encouraging aspiring writers to realize their dreams. The book is published on Amazon and is also freely available through two public libraries, Indie California on the BiblioBoard Library mobile and web platform through the Los Angeles County Libraries, and on Angheli’s own public website to download without cost, to ensure the message of empathy, gratitude, and compassion, as well as the truth of poverty’s vicious cycle, will continue to be shared for years to come.

Bella Zepeda

Seeds Of Change

Bella’s Gold Award project, titled “Seeds of Change,” made an impact on her community by creating a garden at her high school to destress and teach gardening skills. What once was an overgrown weed infested area is now a space where mental health is valued. It is also used by teachers and school clubs as an outdoor meeting space. The first harvest was collected in Spring 2026. Lettuce and herbs were enjoyed by members of the Tiger Terrace Garden Club.

2026 Gold Award Girl Scouts

Thank you for making the world a better place through your creativity, tenacity, and passion. You are inspiring.

WE’RE SO PROUD OF YOU!

Mia Britel Chair

Renee Fraser 1st Vice Chair

Andy Park Vice Chair

Anna Tom Secretary

Dean Catalano

Treasurer

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Pamela Burga

Rosa Chavoya

Roxanne Diaz

Sonia Endler

Christine Gebara

MacKenzie Green

April Houlehan

Debbie Marshall

Jeanne Mau Honeycutt

Sheetal Medatia

Heather Rim

Monica Sanjinez

Sarlina See

Nina Skorus-Neely

Dawn Solér

Nicole Ward

Yu-Ming Wei

Christopher Williams