Meet Gold Award Girl Scout Isabella Cantone!
We are proud to announce that GSSJC’s 2022 GSUSA Gold Award Girl
Scout is Isabella Cantone. For her project, “Menstrual Cycle Awareness
for Swimmers,” Isabella identified that girls were dropping out of
competitive swimming because the were uninfomred about how to handle
their period weeks while participating in the sport.
Isabella created a movement called Project | Week 4 to empower girls
with knowledge about how to handle their menstrual cycles in
competitive swimming and how to educate and communicate with their
coaches on the issue. She created a website of resources with her
pediatrician and nutritionist, which has been shared with a number of
competitive swimming teams across the country. She also created an
educational pamphlet that girls can share with their coaches and a
hand symbol (four fingers) to communicate with their coaches that they
need to leave due to their period.
As a recipient, Isabella completed a Gold Award project that:
• Demonstrated extraordinary leadership.
• Had a measurable and sustainable impact.
• Addressed an issue of national and/or global significance.
I“Many girls locally and nationwide, including states like Alabama
and Michigan, have attended the webinar or watched the video to
understand how to manage their period while swimming. Coaches and
parents also benefited from my project," Isabella said.
Her Gold Award mentor, Bonnie Homier, describes Isabella as an
amazing young woman. "Through the Gold Award, she learned so much
about herself and strengthened her self-confidence. Bella adjusted her
project multiple times to account for the COVID-19 pandemic and the
disappointment of her initial team not following through with their
promised commitments," Bonnie said. "But these gave Bella
the opportunity to learn how to adjust her plan to keep her goal
within sight.”
Isabella will receive:
• An academic scholarship of $2,000.
• An official letter of
notification.
• Promotion that helps her reach a broad audience
while highlighting the importance and impact of her project.
Isabella will also be on a Movement-wide list. Girls on this list -
upon request - may serve as a representative for Girl Scouts through
public relations, web/social, speaking engagements, or other related opportunities.
We can’t wait to see more of Isabella!
Recent GSUSA Gold Award Girl Scouts and National Gold Award Girl Scouts:
Esha Garg, 2022 GSUSA Gold Award Girl Scout
Abigail Plunkett, 2020 National Gold Award Girl Scout
Susan Soh, 2018 National Young Woman of Distinction
Angela Shipman, 2017 National Young Woman of Distinction