By Peter Levy
Heather Hughes didn’t set out to change the world. In 2011, she helped start a Girl Scout troop at Rio del Mar Elementary School for a group of 5-, 6- and 7-year-old girls. Her volunteer efforts over the next 13 years brought an unexpected positive impact to the community.
In the early years, the troop collected teddy bears for children in need, assembled and distributed kits with socks and toothbrushes for people experiencing homelessness, and shared Thanksgiving meals together. When the girls reached sixth grade, Carol-Anne Byck joined Hughes, and the two women shared leadership responsibilities.
Together, they led the troop on camping trips to Mount Madonna, Fremont Peak and Santa Rosa, where the girls learned to build fires, tie knots, set up tents, and plan and cook their own meals. They earned their Outdoor Journey badge, learned first aid and CPR, and paddled kayaks down the Russian River. They attended Camporee and Girl Scout camp. As the girls grew older and more confident, they took over the camping trips entirely, handling everything themselves, from the shopping list to responsibly putting out the last ember.
They moved through every level of scouting together, from Daisies to Brownies, Juniors to Cadettes, Seniors to Ambassadors — a progression that traces not just the arc of a program, but the arc of growing up.
Reflecting on what the girls learned, Hughes said: “They learned how to take charge. They learned how to be leaders and how to work together to do something positive for their community.”
After 13 years together, eight members of the troop are graduating this month from Aptos High School. Six of them — Emma Ingram, Carina Kessler, Evie Kinkead, Cayla Federman, Hannah Levy and Reve MaGuire — have earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, the most prestigious honor in Girl Scouting and a distinction achieved by fewer than 5% of eligible scouts.
The Girl Scouts organization, noting how exceptional it is for six girls from a single troop to achieve Gold Award status in one year, sent Girl Scouts of California’s Central Coast CEO Dr. Tammie Helmuth to honor the girls.
“The Gold Award requires each candidate to identify a real community need, design and execute a sustainable solution, and continue to demonstrate impact after the initial project is complete,” Helmuth said. “All of you have met that rigorous test.”
“These achievements are the result of years of commitment, resilience and learning how to lead,” Helmuth added. “The Gold Award may mark the end of their Girl Scout journey, but it is clearly only the beginning of the impact they will have on their communities.”
None of this was inevitable. It took two women who gave their time generously and without fanfare, families who supported the work, and six young people who chose, over and over again, to stay with it. The fact that they did says something important about the community.
For those who worry about the next generation, look no further than these six young women. Given the right support, the right mentors and the space to lead, young people will not disappoint. They will plant gardens and build sanctuaries. They will put up signs, paint murals and light trees in the dark. They will do things that matter.
The projects that follow are proof of that. Each one began with a young woman who saw a problem her community had not yet solved and decided she was the one to solve it.
Emma Ingram
Turning Heartbreak Into Hope
When Emma Ingram’s cousin was diagnosed with brain cancer, she responded with purpose. Channeling her grief into action, Ingram founded a school club called Hearts of Gold. The club’s mission is to raise awareness about childhood cancer during September, Pediatric Cancer Awareness Month, when the gold ribbon serves as an international symbol of hope for families navigating one of life’s hardest roads.
Ingram partnered with Jacob’s Heart to organize an annual gold ribbon tree-lighting ceremony in the town center, where each ribbon represented a reminder that no family faces childhood cancer alone. The event raised more than $2,000 for families in need and is designed to grow each September, building awareness, funding research and strengthening community support year after year.
Ingram also created permanent educational signs at Aptos High School and Aptos BBQ linking visitors directly to Jacob’s Heart and resources for patients and families. She created and distributed awareness toolkits to students at Aptos Junior High School that provided seventh- and eighth-grade students with information about signs of pediatric cancer, ideas for healthy diets to help prevent cancer, and a gold ribbon for each student.
This fall, Ingram will attend Loyola Marymount University.
Evie Kinkead
Building Monarchs a Home on Campus
When Evie Kinkead looked at the alarming decline in monarch butterfly populations, she didn’t just raise awareness — she built a habitat.
Working at Aptos High School, Kinkead designed and planted a pollinator garden filled with native species and founded a student conservation club that has grown to 65 active members.
An article she wrote for The Pajaronian and a YouTube video she produced, accessible through a QR code at Natural Bridges State Park, brought her message to the broader community.
Monarch sightings near the garden are already increasing, and with underclassmen prepared to carry the club forward, Kinkead’s garden will keep blooming long after graduation.
This fall, Kinkead will attend San Diego State University.
Carina Kessler
Where Others Saw Storage, She Saw Sanctuary
Of all the spaces one might overlook in a shelter, a storage room might be the easiest to miss. Carina Kessler saw potential where others saw clutter. At Siena House, a facility serving unhoused mothers, she transformed a neglected storage space into a fully equipped postpartum recovery room, a place where new mothers experiencing homelessness can rest, heal and bond with their newborns in comfort and dignity.
Coordinating donations, working alongside staff and advocating for maternal wellness, Kessler did more than renovate a room. She built a system. Her sustainability plan ensures the space will be maintained and restocked well into the future, extending her compassion beyond her own hours of service.
Kessler will attend UC Santa Barbara this fall.
Cayla Federman
Protecting the Area’s Smallest Creatures
The tide pools along Pleasure Point are a fragile ecosystem that many visitors do not fully understand, and Cayla Federman made it her mission to change that.
She collaborated with the Aptos High School graphic design class to create permanent protective signage, launched a GoFundMe campaign to fund the project, and partnered with Santa Cruz Public Works to produce and install the signs. The message is simple and lasting: Visitors can protect these ecosystems by observing animals and marine life gently rather than picking them up or taking them home.
Federman also developed printed educational materials, delivered presentations at local schools, and recruited volunteers to participate in beach cleanups alongside Save Our Shores.
Each part of the project reinforced the same goal: reducing human impact on the intertidal zone and preserving it for future generations.
Federman will attend Cal Poly San Luis Obispo this fall.
Hannah Levy
Turning Art Into a Lifeline
Mental health stigma keeps too many teenagers from asking for help when they need it most. Hannah Levy set out to dismantle that barrier at Aptos High School.
Working with school staff, art advisers and district leadership, Levy created a large mural in one of the school’s highest-traffic areas.
Embedded in the mural is a QR code linking directly to the school’s wellness webpage, which offers a range of free and accessible resources.
Realizing students might feel self-conscious about scanning the QR code in public, Levy expanded the project. Mental health awareness posters with the same QR codes now appear on the backs of bathroom stall doors across campus, ensuring that no corner of the school is without that quiet lifeline.
Levy will attend UCLA this fall.
Reve MaGuire
Planting Beautifying Seeds of Change
Life inside a low-income housing community can feel isolating and gray, especially for children with nowhere green to play. Reve MaGuire set out to change that at Parkhurst Terrace, a local MidPen Housing community.
She partnered with the after-school program coordinator to design a project that would beautify the space while teaching children how to improve their own environment.
MaGuire installed a planter box and led hands-on gardening lessons for the community’s children. Through visual aids and interactive activities, she taught young residents practical lessons about growing food and making healthier choices, turning a neglected corner of the property into a living classroom.
MidPen Housing was so impressed that it featured her work across its internal communications platform, signaling to Bay Area communities that MaGuire’s model is worth replicating.
MaGuire will attend UCLA this fall.