Congratulations to former Ellsworth High School Student Belle Albert who was awarded the Girl Scout's Gold Award on Saturday, May 11th. Albert who graduated in 2018 finished her 1st year at UMaine where she is a Zoology major in hopes of going to optometry school.

Photo Belle Albert
Photo Belle Albert
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The Gold Award represents the highest achievement in Girls Scouting, recognizing girls who demonstrate extraordinary leadership through remarkable Take Action projects that have sustainable impact in their communities and beyond.

Few resources are available to adoptees in Maine and across the US and sometimes, adopted children find it difficult to connect and have conversations about what they are going through, even with their adopted families. As the eldest of 3 adopted children, Belle decided to leverage the power of the Internet and social medial to give children and teen from 13-19 an opportunity to communicate in a safe environment

She created a website and Facebook Group as the platform to connect adoptees with other adoptees and professional resources to support them. In order to provide the right resources on her newly developed platforms, Belle built a support team of people in the adoption community including adoption lawyers and counselors, adoptive parents and other adoptees of all ages. The website introduces the individuals on the support team, provides answers to FAQ and even has a chat feature to talk to Belle. The closed Facebook group she started offers a safe space to ask questions and engage in online discussion.

Additionally Belle created a meet-up group for area adoptees. Her Gold Award project has helped adoptees in Maine and beyond make personal connections and will continue to serve as a resource for adoptees seeking support, as well as inspiration and guidance for those seeking to start their own local groups through the handbook she developed to encourage others to create similar platforms in other states.

 

Source - Girl Scout Program

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