GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — The Girl Scouts of Michigan Shore to Shore teaches important life skills that are invaluable to girls right here in West Michigan. Instilling public speaking skills, confidence, independence and more, there is quite an honor and pride in being a Girl Scout.
While most think Girl Scouts are all about cookies, the crumb falls much further than that. Jocelyn Tolliver, a junior at Grand Haven High School, won the prestigious Girl Scout Gold Award for hosting a special needs awareness event involving the community of Grand Haven.
The Girl Scout Gold Award requires 80 hours of community service. Only 5% of Girl Scouts in the country achieve this award. Scouts choose a problem that they want to focus on in the community. Hosted at Imagination Station, an all-accessible and inviting playground, community members learned what they can do to help kids of differing abilities.
To put this event together, Tolliver first met with a local healthcare provider who gave her some more information about kids with special needs. After learning more, Tolliver then went to five Grand Haven City Council meetings, where she was met with helpful and receptive community members who even connected her with a local musician to play between speakers at the event.
Andrew Harington, a physical therapist at Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital, was one of the speakers at the event. He said it was great to see the community come together to try and support all of its community members.
Jocelyn would like to give a special thanks to the following people for making this project possible:
- Melissa Richardson
- Nancy Ferrarini
- Mandy McMahon
- Andrew Harrington
- Jena Kruger
Read Tolliver’s final report below.
