[00:00:00] Walter: The hearts of gold podcast is brought to you by the grow and share network produced by off the Walter media.
[00:00:11] Sheryl: Welcome to hearts of gold. Today we have Isabel with us. Hi, Isabel.
[00:00:16] Isabela: Hi.
[00:00:17] Sheryl: Can you tell us about your Girl Scout gold award project?
[00:00:20] Isabela: So my project was about water conservation. A local Girl Scout came to my camp Dorothy Thomas.
[00:00:25] I replaced the old shower heads with newer water efficient shower heads. I also installed two rain barrels and posted signage. As for the educational aspect of it, I talked to a bunch of Girl Scout troops, both in person and through the meetings, and I hosted a both at a local Lowe’s to talk to the general public.
[00:00:43] Sheryl: What prompted this project? What was your root cause?
[00:00:46] Isabela: I felt that people needed to know more about how they use water affected the environment. And so I thought that maybe if I could educate people more about how their water usage affects what goes on around us, that they would be more water efficient and they would try to use less water.
[00:01:04] Sheryl: Can you tell us about your event at Lowe’s?
[00:01:06] Isabela: I was there for one weekend, both, both Saturday and Sunday, and I was there for a few hours each day. I had this trifold, which had information about, like, what dry seasons are why we should conserve water, what our government does to conserve water. I also let people know what to look for in products at Lowe’s, so that they could know which ones were water efficient.
[00:01:28] And then I also taught them about some rebates that the government offers for water efficient products.
[00:01:33] Sheryl: What kind of feedback did you get from the audience at Lowe’s?
[00:01:37] Isabela: This isn’t going to sound good, but I did not get a lot of it as much as in chat list as I thought a lot of people ignored me because they thought I was asking for donations or trying to sell them something.
[00:01:47] But the people that I did get to talk to, they were very nice. I was really nervous when I was doing that because I hate public speaking. I really do. So it was really scary for me to have to go up to people that I’ve never met before and be like, Hey, would you like to talk about water conservation with me?
[00:02:03] It was, I was terrified but they were real, they were really, really nice, the ones who did talk to me.
[00:02:08] Sheryl: Since that was not as great of an experience as you had hoped for, what are some takeaways that you learned that perhaps could help other Girl Scouts who have to do similar presentations?
[00:02:19] Isabela: Don’t be afraid.
[00:02:20] Okay, they’re just people. They’re not gonna hurt you or anything, you know, most of them are really nice It’s just that they’re kind of like when they go to those they’re looking for something specific because it’s trying to get something done You know, so they’re gonna ignore you They’re not gonna they some of them aren’t gonna take time to talk to you and that’s okay Not everyone has time for that.
[00:02:39] So you just have to kind of roll with the punches, you know, and I did this is one thing that I do remember. I was able to talk to at least a hundred people, which I was blown away because I didn’t think I was going to get that big of a response.
[00:02:50] Sheryl: A hundred people’s a lot of people. That is a successful presentation.
[00:02:56] What surprised you about the Gold Award process that you didn’t know or what struggles did you have?
[00:03:02] Isabela: This isn’t a really a big deal. But while I was filling out my paperwork, I hit a lot of roadblocks because of the character count that they have. Because I, while I was doing my paperwork, I kept remembering more things that I had to add, things that I did, results that I had to include.
[00:03:18] And so I ended up rewriting some of that stuff like three times. Even if that doesn’t get fixed, I would definitely recommend that while girls are working on their gold award, they like keep record of everything that they do that they would want to include to let council know what they did. Because that way they can include it all the first time and won’t have to redo it like I did.
[00:03:34] Sheryl: I agree. And another tip for that, is doing it in a Google or a Word doc, because then you can highlight it and find out how many characters are in your paragraph. And it’s easier to edit in the document format than in GoGold also. Second tip is that you can attach additional documents in GoGold when you’re getting ready to submit your final report.
[00:03:58] So if there are sections that you really wanted to share something and you just didn’t have space for, you can do another document and upload it also. I think that’s a great observation because until you’re in the Gold Award website, you don’t know those things. \
[00:04:14] What’s a favorite memory from your project?
[00:04:16] Isabela: Probably when I was at CDT and I was posting all the signage, because I had some of my troupe members help me to go there so we could get it done quicker. And we went around to all the cabins. There was this one cabin that was being used at the time by another cadet troupe. So we had to ask them if we could, you know, enter the cabin to post the signage.
[00:04:35] And they were very nice and sweet about it. And we got to talk to some of them about some of the girls that were working on their gold awards and what their ideas were. And I just, I really enjoyed that.
[00:04:44] Sheryl: So you mentioned your troop. Who else was on your team and how did they help you?
[00:04:47] Isabela: So on my team, I had Ranger Steve, who is the ranger for CDT Camp Dorothy Thomas.
[00:04:52] He was very nice. He was super excited that I wanted to do my Girl Scout Gold Award at his camp. He has a bunch of ideas. I don’t know if this is going to be helpful, but he also has a bunch of ideas for eagle projects, if anyone’s interested in those, because I know some people do both Girl Scouts and BSA.
[00:05:08] I was nervous to talk to him because I was proposing to do something at his camp but he was very nice and very welcoming. I also had a lady at a I don’t remember what the office was called, but she does programs with UF. At that office, to teach people about micro irrigation and water barrels, she was my advisor.
[00:05:27] I actually met her when I was going to the class for water barrels, because that was part of my culture. If anyone’s looking for an advisor, if you have an opportunity to make a love confession, I would recommend that you do that. So that that way, if you email them later on, they have like, oh, I know this girl, I met her.
[00:05:40] Sheryl: And is UF University of Florida?
[00:05:42] Isabela: Yes, UF is the University of Florida.
[00:05:45] Sheryl: You talked also about working with your team to put up signs. How else did you demonstrate leadership during your project?
[00:05:52] Isabela: So, another way that I demonstrate leadership, I would say, was during my in person meetings with Girl Scouts.
[00:05:57] Because sometimes I would be working in groups. from ranges of troops of eight girls to 25. So sometimes with the larger groups, I would ask girls from my troop if they could help me lead the meetings and they did a wonderful job. I’m really proud of how they handle it because I have prior experience working with daisies because I did that during my cadet level, but they didn’t do that.
[00:06:18] So I was super proud. And like, I thought it was a wonderful experience.
[00:06:21] Sheryl: What other Girl Scout experiences have you had either with your troop or by yourself?
[00:06:26] Isabela: Last summer I did a traveling camp with Girl Scouts where we went to Tallahassee in Georgia and North Carolina and I was super excited because I have never gone out of state with Girl Scouts before and I got to try a bunch of new things like we did whitewater kayaking and we did outdoor rock climbing.
[00:06:43] I, I loved it. And there’s a bunch of other opportunities like that that I think should be advertised more because they’re really, it’s a really unique experience. Actually, I’m doing another one of a longer trip with Girl Scout destinations. Actually, in a few days, I’m going to be going to India with Girl Scouts to visit our World Center in Pune, India.
[00:07:07] Sheryl: What got you interested in going to Sangam in India?
[00:07:10] Isabela: So I had been looking at the destinations for a while and I was like really nervous because I’ve never left the country without my parents. So that was kind of nerve wracking to think about doing that. But going to Sangam, it’s because one of the main reasons is that we’re going to be going there during Holi week, which is like a celebration in India for I can’t remember what it was for, but I was really excited because I’ve seen videos of it like online and I thought it was super cool.
[00:07:37] Sheryl: And Sangam is one of the WAGs, World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts world centers. So if you aren’t familiar with what we’re referring to as Sagam in India, that is why it is a destination. That Isabelle is going to get a chance to do and it’s so exciting and not very many Girl Scouts get to do it.
[00:08:00] So it’s super special. I’m very excited for you. You also attended Girl Scout National Convention in Orlando last year. Can you tell us about your experience there?
[00:08:11] Isabela: We went for one of the weekends for the convention and it was crowded. To say the least, there were so many people there. I got to meet Girl Scouts from not only all around the country, but from also from different countries.
[00:08:26] Like there were some people who were visiting from like Central America. There are some people who were visiting from Canada. It was super exciting. And then there were also a bunch of booths that I got to see. Like, there were people from different branches of the U. S. military promoting, like, the Coast Guard and stuff.
[00:08:44] There was also some people from MAXA, and there was also another group for a Women’s Engineer Association, which I thought was super cool.
[00:08:52] Sheryl: Why would engineering be cool? What’s in your future?
[00:08:56] Isabela: When I was a cadet, my mom had one of her friends who works as a civil engineer, I believe. And she came and taught us the Think Like an Engineer.
[00:09:04] I think it’s a journey. I had a blast. We did super cool things, like we made little life vests for for Tiny Corgi. I had, it was so much fun. So I thought, you know, oh, maybe I could do this for a living, you know? So when I go to college, I’m considering looking into engineering as a major.
[00:09:21] Sheryl: What else are you involved in?
[00:09:23] Isabela: I’m in Boy Scouts of America. They my troop, Troop 610, has a girls patrol, but we’re trying to gather numbers so that we can become our own troop. How
[00:09:32] Sheryl: does Boy Scouts of America compare with your Girl Scout experience?
[00:09:38] Isabela: The thing is that with Boy Scouts, they do have merit badges that are for STEM and Arts, but most of the required merit badges for Eagle, which is the highest rank, it’s like the BSA equivalent of The gold word, I guess you could say most of those are geared toward things like first aid, swimming, hiking, camping, stuff like that.
[00:10:00] So it’s more geared towards the outdoors with areas to move into STEM and art. While Girl Scouts depends on the individual troop, they can do what they want. They can do mostly outdoor stuff. They can choose to do mostly artsy stuff. They can choose to do most like music stuff. BSA is predominantly geared towards camping, while you can still branch off and do other things.
[00:10:20] But Girl Scouts is more about the troop and also the individual scouts can do whatever they want.
[00:10:26] Sheryl: Are you considering working towards your Eagle?
[00:10:29] Isabela: The thing is, is that about Eagle is that it takes a very long time because you have to go through all the other ranks before you can acquire the rank of Eagle.
[00:10:36] And so why I would love to do it, I don’t know. Is I would have enough time left before I age out. And also I would not want to be one of those scouts that has to brush it at the very end before they leave the program.
[00:10:48] Sheryl: I agree. And you can imagine, I get the question about, Oh, the Gold award that’s like the Eagle Scout a lot.
[00:10:55] And. And similar to you, you know, my answer is, and I’m glad because you just supported this answer that I’m giving, is that the Eagle Scout is much more of a long journey where you’re building on your skills and you’re continuing to increase in rank. And so it’s, you have to start at the base and you work your way up.
[00:11:17] And then you, yes, there is a project at the end. And the Eagle Scout is the highest recognition within Boy Scouts. But getting there is much different than the Gold Award, where technically, you could start Girl Scouts in high school, earn your journey, and then earn your Gold Award. The Eagle Scout is the highest recognition within Boy Scouts.
[00:11:40] Many more expectations than the project for the Eagle Scout. So while they’re both the highest recognitions within each organization the pathways to get there are very different and the projects themselves that are the capstone are very, very different, would you. Would you agree with that?
[00:11:58] Isabela: Oh, absolutely.
[00:11:59] When my brother, he’s in BSA and he’s the chief, the rank of evil. And while he was working on his project, I was, I started my gold award on like right as he was ending his ego. So while he was working on this project, I was absolutely baffled because they have very different requirements. Like it doesn’t have to be very sustainable, nor do they have a hour requirement, they don’t have to do like advocacy or something, but while for girls to go gold awards, there’s a rule.
[00:12:27] Mostly, it can’t be like a beautification project.
[00:12:30] Sheryl: What else would you like to share with the audience?
[00:12:32] Isabela: This is going to make me sound like a brat, but in the beginning of my Gold Award, I, I did not want to accept help from anyone because I had this idea in my head that the Gold Award was something that you had to do by yourself, that you couldn’t accept help from others.
[00:12:46] The Gold Award is not something you can do by yourself, nor is it something that you should try to do by yourself. It’s a big thing. Okay, and I’m mentioning this because I see some of my friends that are starting their Gold Award, they’re going through this too. Because while I was working on my proposal, my mom kept trying to like, read it.
[00:13:05] And she told me, Isabel, You are writing like a high schooler and I am like, well, that’s because I am a high schooler. But she’s like, yes, but even if you are a high schooler, this is supposed to be more mature. You’re writing this for adults to read. Okay. I didn’t want to accept help because you know, I thought it was something I had to do on my own.
[00:13:24] You, this is not something you’re supposed to do on your own because the gold award is supposed to be about leadership, you know, and one of the big things about leadership is accepting help from others. And, you know, letting others help you.
[00:13:35] Sheryl: I love that. I’m so glad that you shared that. That was really heartfelt.
[00:13:39] How do you make your s’mores?
[00:13:41] Isabela: I try to get them to be like golden brown every single time, but then it takes too long and I get impatient and it’ll be closer to the fire and they, they catch on fire and then they always end up charred and black.
[00:13:53] Sheryl: Thank you for joining me today.
[00:13:55] Isabela: Yeah, absolutely.
[00:13:56] Sheryl: Make sure to click follow or subscribe so you always know when new episodes are released.
[00:14:02] Power your passion and conquer your challenges.
[00:14:07] Walter: Thank you for listening. If you’d like to be on the show to share your story of how you earned your gold award, reach out and send an email to growandshare@outlook.com.
[00:14:17] Be sure to catch up on our previous shows on any of your favorite podcasting platforms, as well as view the full video versions at youtube.com/SherylMRobinson. Thanks again for listening, and we’ll see you next time.