Donna O’Connor and Koren Dee Kalogera were honored by the mayor and council in a June ceremony for their achieving the rank of gold in the Girl Scouts.
Mayor Dennis Elwell presented both girls with plaques noting their “outstanding service to the town of Secaucus.”
The Girl Scout Gold Award is the highest award that a Senior Girl Scout can earn. There are various requirements to earn the distinction. The final criteria involve a project that includes at least 50 hours of community work.
O’Connor visited the Meadowlands Hospital, where she set up at teddy bear clinic. She distributed teddy bears to sick children as well as offered these children various kinds of positive support.
Kalogera’s project involved educating fellow scouts about birds and their natural habitants around this area. She also participated in a winter survey of birds for Cornell University and the National Audubon Society.
The Gold Scouting Award is designed to enhance leadership skills while at the same time encouraging teamwork.
“The whole idea of the Girl Scout Gold Award is that you do something to benefit your community and learn those skills that make you a citizen of your community and the world,” said an official at the Montclair office of the Girl Scout Council after the presentation.
Mayor Dennis Elwell called both girls a credit to Secaucus and said that he had heard of their activities during a Girl Scout Dinner in May and wanted to do something special to honor them.
“I think these are the kind of girls doing the kind of things residents of Secaucus can be proud of,” Elwell said.
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