2024 Reflections Program

Jessica Aldenderfer Jessica decided to take action to do her part for the environment after she recognized the lack of recycling bins at schools and the misuse of recycling bins when they are in place. To earn her Gold Award, Jessica educated local elementary school students about the importance of recycling. Jessica taught the students the recycling process, what should go into recycling bins, and how recycling is sorted. She also worked with the students to collect plastic caps to construct a school bench from them. In addition to her work with the elementary school, Jessica collaborated with the environmental club at her high school, creating a recycling program for their cafeteria, complete with a video presentation educating students about recycling. “I loved helping the Earth with my Gold Award Project. It was important to me and I want others to learn how to make the Earth cleaner and more sustainable.” McKenna Baan After recognizing that many students were struggling to go back to school post-pandemic, McKenna wrote a poetic children’s book about anxiety titled “Kindred Creatures, The Emotions We Share.” The book examines the situations students encounter in school that may cause anxiety. McKenna educated her readers on how they might experience anxiety throughout the day and what anxious behaviors may look like. Along with the book, McKenna designed a bookmark that listed healthy coping mechanisms and calming strategies for the students to use to reduce anxious feelings. In addition to authoring the book, she worked with school administrators at Pond Elementary to coordinate days when she was able to read excerpts from her book to older elementary school students. Her book is also displayed each year at libraries in her district for Mental Health Awareness Month in October.

District 12, Troop 696 Marquette High School 13 years in Girl Scouts Milestones Girl Scout Bronze Award Girl Scout Silver Award 13-Year Girl Scout Graduating Girl Scout

District 12, Juliette Eureka High School 13 years in Girl Scouts Milestones Girl Scout Bronze Award Girl Scout Silver Award 13-Year Girl Scout 2023 Graduate Girl Scout

“I am focused on continuing to help others and growing my leadership skills in the future.”