Girl Scouts from West Windsor and Plainsboro were recently honored by state and local dignitaries for demonstrating exemplary leadership abilities and project management skills as they earned the prestigious gold, silver, and bronze Awards — the highest awards a girl can earn at each grade level. Leadership development is the core of the Girl Scout movement and is woven through everything a girl experiences in the organization.
Six senior and ambassador (independent) Girl Scouts achieved the gold award. They are Shweta Ravichandar, Tasneem Maner, Nikita Barde, Alexis Bruno, Halley Costantino, and Charlotte Mendes. Forty-four Girl Scout cadettes earned silver awards, and 32 Girl Scout juniors earned bronze awards. Shing-Fu Hsueh, mayor of West Windsor; Neil Lewis, deputy mayor of Plainsboro; and Daniel R. Benson, New Jersey State Assemblyman, joined the celebration.
#b#Gold Awards#/b#
The gold award recipients undertook the following projects:
Shweta Ravichandar of Troop 70208 created “Run-2-Read,” a project to raise awareness of healthy lifestyles that included book donations for the Plainsboro Public Library. She planned and organized a 5K walk/run in Mercer County Park last May to encourage the community to participate in physical activities for a healthy and fit life. She worked with the Plainsboro Library’s health center. Her advisor was Pat Helck and her mentor was Eileen Burnash.
Tasneem Maner of Troop 70677 created “Fit Fitness Into Your Lifestyle.” She hosted a series of motivational sessions for seniors at the Elements at West Windsor that explored daily exercise and healthy eating through interactive speeches, PowerPoint presentations, and consultations with certified personal trainers.
She worked with a certified personal trainer to create and put into effect two supplements for residents including a step-by-step exercise pamphlet and an equipment guide for the exercise machines located on the walking path around the community lake. Her advisor was Kate Henkel and her mentor was Grisel Sandoval.
Nikita Barde of Troop 70677 created “Puppet Theater for the Children of El Centro.” She constructed a puppet theater, collected puppets, and presented puppet shows to the children of an organization in Trenton that provides family services to families in need. El Centro will continue to use the puppets in its ongoing programs to help the children, most of immigrant Hispanic families, assimilate into American culture and learn English in a fun and engaging manner. Her advisor was Louisa Ho and her mentor was Maria Duarte.
Alexis Bruno of Troop 70677 completed the project “Gym Games at Habitat for Humanity.” She created a new gym games program at the East Trenton Habitat for Humanity’s afterschool and summer camp programs for underprivileged children. She purchased gym equipment and taught gym games to the children in multiple sessions. Bruno also provided written instructions for the games as well as a video. Her advisor was Louisa Ho and her mentor was Kiya Green.
Halley Costantino of Troop 71480 created “Plainsboro Safety Town,” a week-long camp that instructed pre-k students in the proper use of 911, and fire, bus, pedestrian, and bicycle safety. Children learned different safety practices through stories, movies, crafts and community helper visits. They practiced their new skills by riding tricycles or walking through a town that had roads, houses, sidewalks, stop signs, and a traffic light.
A graduation ceremony was held to celebrate the efforts of the children and to share their newly learned safety experiences with their families. Her advisor was Kathy Slothower and her mentor was Sergeant Joe Jankowski.
Charlotte Mendes of Troop 71500 created “Project Reading.” She provided a mobile library for the after school program run at the Washington Elementary School in Trenton. All the books are displayed on mobile carts that can be taken to the children in the classrooms and the recreational space. The books are color coded, which allows the children to select age and skill level appropriate books. Her advisor was Wendy Kramer and her mentor was Denise Wentzler.
#b#Silver Awards#/b#
The silver award is the highest award for Girl Scout Cadettes (grades 6 to 8) and the second highest award in Girl Scouting. Recipients of silver awards have successfully completed projects that demonstrated that they are leaders who are organized, determined, and dedicated to improving their communities. Girls may work individually or with a team.
Silver award recipients from Troop 70145 with leader Shipra Mitra include Michelle Giang with “Summer Events for Children with Learning Differences,” Anuranita Gupta with “No More Idling,” Pia Mitra Pal with “Nutritious Feast,” and Shailee Shah with “Conquering Congo.”
Troop 70206 with leaders Evelyn Turney, Maria Benerofe, and Marilyn Menninger had silver awards for Emma Turney and Annie Menninger with “Finding Homes for Homeless Animals,” and Kara Benerofe, Julia Komosinsky, and Rachel Komosinsky for “Bridging the Generations.”
Troop 70214 with leaders Dorothy Safranek and Chenthamarie Natarajan. Award recipients include Brianna Watson and Sophia Isnardifor “Cookies for the Community through Baking Classes,” Sahana Natarajan for “Young at Heart,” Vrinda Gupta for “A Ray of Hope,” Danielle Lane for “Colors All Around Us,” Rameen Masood for “Mission Weather,” and Allison Safranek for “Mission Density.”
Troop 70216 with leaders Kate Henkel, May Rowland, and Minal Patel. Awards were received by Saachi Bedi and Allie Dignan for “Promoting Adoptability at SAVE,” Lisa D’Souza for “Cranbury Clean-Up Day,” Radhika Gupta and Emma Kothari for “Dance at S.K.O.R.,” Anna Henkel, Shivani A J Patel, and Ritu Vyas for “Rock Brook School Universal Week,” Jade Lily Ka-Kay Rowland and Aashna Tilve for “Special Kids Organized Recreation (S.K.O.R.) Family Fun Day,” Kacy Lane and Kate McManus for “Mercer Elementary School Culinary and Nutrition Program,” Julia Laresch for “Empowering Children to Lead a Healthier Lifestyle,” Sadana Padmanabhan for “Kids 4 Kids,” and Lisa Park for “Project Dance Party.”
Troop 70627 with leaders Jackie Houck and Diane Weber. Awards for Emily Bartell for “Pause for Pets,” Dana Houck for “One Call Could Wreck It All,” Jiwon Kim for “Making A Friend,” Olivia Nuttal for “Let’s Get Fit,” Sruthi Pasupuleti for “Read On,” Julianna Rossano for “It’s Easy Being Green,” Emily Weber for “Help Those in Need by Learning to Crochet or Knit,” and Megan Weber for “Making the Charity Connection.”
Troop 70871, leaders Laurie Renz and Tephanie Meiers. Award recipients include Claire Meiers and Ashley Ann Renz for “Gator Gift Shop,” Katherine Giminaro for “Promote English Literacy in Namibia,” Victoria Hannah for “Pillows of Love,” and Shruti Jain for “Books for Inpatient Pediatric Patients at Shriners Hospital.”
#b#Bronze Awards#/b#
The bronze award, the highest award a Junior Girl Scout in grades 4 to 5 can earn, requires her to learn the leadership and planning skills to follow through on a group project that makes a positive impact on her community.
Troop 70038, leaders Michele Daitz and Amberine Saldanha, “Cake Baking for the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen.” Award recipients include Rebecca Daitz, Kyarah Freeman, Izzy Levatino, Olivia Lluberes, Esha Raman, Katelyn Saldanha, and Nisha Srinivas.
Troops 70761 and 71986 worked together. Leaders Rachel George and Amy Vena mentored “SAVE.” Susan George and Erin Yeh received awards.
Leaders Kristen Lane and Sarah Wang led “Scout Out a Good Book.” Award recipients include Kelly Donnelly, Olivia Dyke, Shreya Gowda, Sam Tanapat-Hastings, Natasha Kanitkar, Kayli Ko, Kelsey Lane, Caroline Palmer, and Izzy Zheng.
Troop 71110 with leaders Deb Vivona and Laurie Renz led “Animal Care.” Award recipients include Piper Guerrero and Emily Elizabeth Renz.
Troop 71289 with leaders Mickie Jarecki, Limy John, and Jacqueline Fernandes, led “Babysitting at the WW-P Girl Scout Leaders Meetings.” Award recipients were Sanjana Behare, Christine Chan, Allison Duane, Nikitha P. Gadangi, Aneesha Gopal, Manya Mehta, Meghan Mohnot, Jacqueline Ann Pacifico, Isha Patlola, Jessica Polin, Neha Tailigeri, and Kavya Tummalapalli.
