WILLMAR -- Jennifer Paterson and Beth Novak will receive their Girl Scout Gold Awards at 2 p.m. Sunday at Calvary Lutheran Church in Willmar.
The Gold Award is the highest achievement in Girl Scouting. To earn it, the scout must have earned the Career Exploration Pin, the Senior Girl Scout Leadership Award, the Senior Girl Scout Challenge pin and four interest project patches; all of which promote community service, personal and spiritual growth, positive values and leadership skills with more than 60 hours of volunteer service.
The final step is to spend a minimum of 50 hours planning and implementing a project that has a positive and lasting impact on the community.
For their service project, "Let's Get Camping," Paterson and Novak planned and conducted three camps for Girl Scouts and non-Girl Scouts. Each camp was designed for a specific age level and taught skills in exploring the outdoors. Novak and Paterson individually were responsible for certain elements of the camps and worked as a team to plan activities, purchase supplies, collect the equipment required and lead the activities. Each camp included an outdoor overnight campout where the campers were able to practice the skills they learned.
Paterson and Novak are both seniors at Willmar High School and members of Troop 708 in Willmar. Their adviser was Clarice Novak. Paterson is the daughter of Bill and Deb Paterson of Willmar. Novak is the daughter of Randy and Clarice Novak of Willmar.
