Girl Scout Maureen earns Community Leaders of Tomorrow Award
Girl Scout Ambassador Maureen was recently recognized by the Chesapeake Environmental Improvement Council (CEIC) and Chesapeake City Parks, Recreation and Tourism for her work towards making the city of Chesapeake greener. On May 23, 2024, Maureen was invited to take part in the 40th Annual Environmental Awards Ceremony, during which she was presented with the Community Leaders of Tomorrow Award. This annual ceremony serves as a recognition event for individuals, groups, and organizations that have been involved in outstanding recycling, beautification, litter control, and environmental projects in Chesapeake.
Maureen is pursuing the Girl Scout Gold Award and took action to educate her community about the many ways they can make a difference in the health of their city. She accomplished this by hosting a community event which took place on April 6, 2024. Maureen hosted the Earth Day celebration at Great Bridge Battlefield & Waterways Historic Park. Guests were given a park map and a “passport” of activities. Following, the visitors were invited to explore activity stations, participate in a trail clean-up, and learn about Virginia organizations with missions related to environmentalism. Community organizations who supported the event included the Beekeepers Guild of Southeast Virginia, The Butterfly Society of Virginia, the Elizabeth River Project, Virginia Naturalists, Chesapeake Recycles, and Virginia Master Gardeners. Along with providing access to information and resources, the event offered the opportunity for visitors to participate in a trash audit station, a plastic bag drop-off, a clothing swap, and a craft station with recyclable materials.
“The event I hosted was to educate people on smart recycling and plastic consumption,” Maureen said. “Chesapeake City canceled the city funded recycling program, and this was really hard for the city because people don’t have easy access to recycling like they did before. I wanted to help the community understand how they can recycle correctly and how they can help the environment correctly, so they don’t damage systems that are in place. This is our planet and we should all want to keep it clean, and healthy, and safe.”
To ensure the impact of her project is sustainable, Maureen is now working on compiling a list of businesses and resources in the Chesapeake area that offer recycling programs for items such as clothing, ink cartridges, and electronics, which can often be difficult to properly recycle. She plans to create a brochure and work with the City of Chesapeake to make the list available online on the city’s website.
Like many Girl Scouts, protecting our planet is part of Maureen’s DNA. She’s been on a wave of environmental stewardship throughout her Girl Scout journey. Maureen earned the Girl Scout Silver Award, the highest award for a Girl Scout Cadette, by shining a spotlight on the prevention of pollution in our waterways. To earn the Silver Award, she planned and implemented a project whereby she created and published a book, The Great Ocean Cleanup. She also conducted several workshops on the topic with younger Girl Scouts. As a Girl Scout Junior, Maureen earned the Bronze Award for another recycling project; she collected the crayons that are often thrown away at restaurants for nearly a year.
Congratulations, Maureen!
