Sponsored by Wittler Orthodontics
Westfield High School senior Mialena Gordeau recently earned her Gold Award through Girl Scouts by helping a local nonprofit.
Gordeau joined Girl Scouts in 2012 at just 5 years old, and couldn’t imagine where it would take her over the next 13 years.
“At first it was simply a place to do crafts, sell cookies and wear a cute vest, but over the past decade, Girl Scouts has become like my second family,” she said. “They have watched me grow up and grown up with me. I would not have been able to complete this award without the support of the Girl Scouts and my parents.”
The Girls Scouts Gold Award is the highest recognition received in the program. The Girl Scout identifies a need in her community, researches and creates a plan, and then takes action. For Gordeau, she turned to Student Impact of Westfield, a nonprofit program she recalled from her intermediate school days.
“I went to the after-school program once or twice per week,” she said. “We’d go to the gym for games, connections, snacks and a lesson. When the pandemic happened I stopped going. However, I always admired what they did and wanted to give back to a program that gave so much to me and my community.”
Student Impact of Westfield provides a safe and consistent space for fifth- through 12th-graders to build friendships, connect to their community and develop leadership skills.
When Gordeau began planning and researching, she learned a startling statistic. Students aged 8 to 18 spend an average of seven hours and 22 minutes per day on a screen. The shift away from in-person interactions can make it harder for young people to develop healthy relationships and crucial social skills.
She got to work creating games meant to pull students away from their screens for fun and fellowship.
“I designed and built a tic-tac-toe board and a ring-toss game,” she said. “I also donated other educational games and puzzles to them. I wanted to tackle the issue by providing both indoor and outdoor games that encourage kids to engage with each other.”
It wasn’t an easy task, and like many high school students, Gordeau’s schedule was already tight. She found a balance and learned important skills along the way.
“I had to figure out how to juggle all of this while staying on track with my project,” she said. “Time management became super important. Despite the challenges, I managed to stay organized, improve my time management skills and keep everyone in the loop, which ultimately helped the project succeed.”
The games were a hit, and Gordeau is hopeful students will continue to use the games as options for play, keeping their bodies and brains active.
She plans to major in biology with a pre-dental focus, with the ultimate goal of becoming an orthodontist. She’s currently working on her dental assistant license. She’s been accepted to Purdue University, the University of Kentucky and Baylor University, but has not yet decided for the fall.
