Gold Award Girl Scout Upgrades, Refurbishes Camp Four Winds
HAVEN, Kan. — Girl Scouts of Kansas Heartland congratulates Kaley M. for becoming a Gold Award Girl Scout, a designation she earned by establishing a new system of trails across the 232 acres of the Girl Scouts of Kansas Heartland Camp Four Winds property.
The Gold Award is the mark of the truly remarkable — earned by a high school Girl Scout who works to address an issue she’s passionate about in a way that produces meaningful and lasting change. Whether it’s on a local, national, or global level, Gold Award Girl Scouts provide innovative solutions to significant challenges.
“Gold Award Girl Scouts don’t just change the world for the better, they change it for good — and Kaley embodies everything this achievement stands for," said Rolinda Sample, chief executive officer of Girl Scouts of Kansas Heartland. “Kaley addressed an issue that’s important to her — accessibility and usage of the entire Camp Four Winds property — for her Gold Award, and we congratulate her on this momentous accomplishment.”
As an avid camper and lifetime Girl Scout, Kaley has spent many summers exploring Camp Four Winds, based in Leon, Kansas. At Camp Four Winds, Kaley realized that only the northwest portion was being utilized and that the entire southeast section was overgrown, covered in dilapidated and unnecessary fencing and debris from an old farmstead and had no established paths or hiking trails.
Kaley acted and created a 16-phase plan to tackle the monstrous project of updating the southeast portion of camp so future Girl Scout campers could utilize it for primitive camping and advanced hiking. Her plan first began by creating trails and pathways that could not only be utilized for hiking, but were also created as access points for the rest of the project. The remaining phases involved cleaning up old farm trash — including three miles of barbed wire — creating picnic tables and benches, building three bridges, creating trail markings and signs so campers wouldn’t get lost, camp and memorial rocks, and trail cleanup.
Along with the upgrades to camp, Kaley wanted to ensure there would be areas where Girl Scouts can continue camp traditions. In one section, she created a hiking landmark complete with a fire ring and statues where girls could go as their final destination after a long hike and share camp stories, songs and more. Kaley also made over 3,000 SWAPS and built a SWAP-making station so future campers could make their own SWAPS and trade with other Girl Scouts.
“This project took more than three years with 1,161 total hours of work just from myself,” Kaley said. “I’m very grateful for the team that helped. I wouldn’t have been able to do this without them. I hope my project helps keep camp traditions alive and that more of the camp property space will start being used.”
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About Girl Scouts of Kansas Heartland
Girl Scouts of Kansas Heartland serves more than 10,000 members in 80 Kansas counties through its operational headquarters in Wichita, Kan., and regional offices in Salina, Hays, Emporia and Garden City. Founded in 1912, Girl Scouts is the leading authority on girls’ healthy development and is the pre-eminent leadership development organization for girls. Girl Scouting builds girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place.
About the Girl Scout Gold Award
Gold Award Girl Scouts don’t just change the world for the better, they change it for good. The Gold Award is earned by girls in grades 9–12 who demonstrate extraordinary leadership in developing sustainable solutions to local, national, and global challenges. Since 1916, Girl Scouts have answered the call to drive lasting, impactful change. The Gold Award is the mark of the truly remarkable.
May 03, 2023
