100th Year of the Gold Award

This year marks an important milestone for the Girl Scout community, as it is the 100 year anniversary of the Girl Scout Gold Award—the highest and most prestigious award that a young woman can earn in Girl Scouts. The award started in 1916, when the best and brightest young women undertook projects that improve their communities and the world.

The award, formerly known as the Golden Eaglet until 1939, was the beginning of a long tradition of recognizing extraordinary efforts of women in scouting. Since that time, the award has held several names—from The Curved Bar Award, to the First Class—but with every iteration, the principle of the award has not changed. Since its inception, the Gold Award has inspired girls to find the greatness in themselves and share their ideas and passions with their communities.

We are particularly inspired by this award and the young women who achieve it as the process is no easy undertaking. Young women work to identify issues in their community, investigate and create a solution, build teams and execute projects and programs that are sustainable for years to come. These young women change the fabric of our community each and every day. They do so by creating walking paths for their communities, building solar suitcases for third world communities, commissioning public art projects that unify their diverse neighborhoods and creating programs for those in need.

When we think about the hours of dedication it takes for these young women to complete their awe-inspiring projects, we know that these young women are learning skills that will take them great places and they are poised to be the leaders of tomorrow. These young women will join the ranks of mothers and businesswomen who are leading their families and companies to greatness. Many will join the growing number of CEO’s who head Fortune 500 companies. Some will be advocates, scientists, explorers, artists and teachers. They’ll be as diverse as their projects, but each one will be a leader in her own right.

They’ll join the millions of other women who also earned their Gold Awards—and are quietly shaping our lives and communities every day. Most importantly, they’ll be ready for these challenges.

They’ll be ready because they learned what it meant to let their passions lead them.  They’ll be ready because they learned how to create lasting change. They’ll be ready because they found their voice. They’ll be ready because they were Girl Scouts. 

If you or someone you know earned their Gold Award, we’d love to hear your/her story. Please visit www.gshnj.org and click on “100th Year of the Gold” so that you can tell your Gold Award story. We can't wait to connect!