Friday, August 20, 2010

Oak Mountain Sophomore Earns Gold Award

Joy, a 10th grader at Oak Mountain High School, recently earned her Gold Award. Joy wanted to make a difference in the lives of local children attending the AG Gaston Boys and Girls Club programs. By developing an empowerment program and collaborating with professionals in the community, she was able to educate the children on many options they have when choosing a career path and pursuing their dreams. She and fellow Girl Scouts, along with volunteers from the Jack and Jill of America organization, held mini-seminars that related to career fields. Along with the seminars, Joy and her volunteers presented experiments that had to do with each career field so the children could receive a firsthand experience. Fields covered included medicine, writing, history, engineering, math and music. Each child received a notebook at the beginning of the week and had homework each night to research the next day's career topic. Through earning her Gold Award, Joy learned she had the courage and ability to overcome any obstacle, and that although she was just a teenager, she had the ability to empower others. Joy is the daughter of Adolphus and Diann of Birmingham.