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Gold Award Spotlight: The Safe Space Project
When Girl Scout Ambassador Nomi from Troop 679, a 2025 graduate of First Colonial High School in Virginia Beach, set out to earn the Girl Scout Gold Award, she wanted to take on a project that would truly make an impact on the lives of some of our most vulnerable communities. She identified a long-standing challenge faced by families visiting the Virginia Beach Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court. Nomi has a history of being a changemaker, previously earning the Girl Scout Bronze Award as a Girl Scout Junior.
“Families with young children who are called to appear in the Virginia Beach Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court have historically struggled with long wait times and unsuitable waiting areas as their cases were processed through the courts,” Nomi explained. “For some time, this caused the court waiting areas to be unhappy, uncomfortable places for young children, resulting in a lobby full of crying, loud, restless children whose needs weren’t being met.”
Working closely with Judge Timothy Quick, Virginia Beach Public Schools Social Worker Nancy Reckling, and other members of the Virginia Beach Juvenile & Domestic Relations District Court team, Nomi developed a thoughtful plan to address this need. With their guidance in planning, advising, and approving the project, she designed inviting, child-friendly spaces aimed at reducing stress and discomfort for children and their families. The project was funded by The Board of Friends, a community group that makes donations in support of individuals in juvenile and domestic courts.
“My goal was to create spaces that effectively reduce children’s stress and discomfort that came from an unpleasant waiting environment,” she shared.
After completing the installation, Nomi measured success through feedback from courthouse staff and community members. “I am excited to report that I was successful in reaching my goal of creating a space that is a positive addition to the courthouse, is visually appealing and well-arranged, and that it has achieved the goal of improving the waiting environment for children in the courthouse,” Nomi shared. “Feedback turned out to be 100% positive.”
On behalf of the Commonwealth of Virginia, Amy K. Burnam, clerk of Virginia Beach Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court, wrote to Girl Scouts of the USA in praise of Nomi’s Gold Award project.
In the letter, Burnam shared, “We are grateful to Nomi for completing her Gold Award ‘Safe Space Project’ at the Virginia Beach Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court. Her project will benefit the children and families who visit our court allowing them to play with educational toys and read children’s books while they wait for their court hearings. The final results were creative and warmed up the very sterile spaces. Nomi was a pleasure to work with, taking our needs and suggestions into consideration when she planned the spaces, and created two exceptional reading nooks. We plan on sustaining her hard work and will maintain it for the foreseeable future with assistance from Friends of the Virginia Beach Juvenile Court and out other court partners.”
The impact of the project extends far beyond its comforting design. According to Nomi, her work helps children “gain the ability to self-regulate while waiting long hours by having a space that provides them both a comforting area that helps them feel safer and activities that keep them engaged.” This improvement not only benefits the children but also their parents, who can now experience less stress and greater peace of mind while navigating difficult circumstances.
Through her leadership, creativity, and compassion, Nomi has left a lasting mark on her community and demonstrated the spirit of the Girl Scout Gold Award. Her project is a reflection of empathy in action, turning a place of tension into one of calm and care for families who need it most.
