Girl Scout wins Gold Award for mental health project

Story and Photo by Alice Gerard

Senior Contributing Writer

Mental health is a passion of Skye Dreher, a graduate of Grand Island High School, who earned the Girl Scout’s Gold Award by creating a project with the theme, “You are never alone.”

Skye’s Gold Award, as well as her project, earned recognition at a recent meeting of the Grand Island Board of Education, held at Grand Island High School.

“I’m always a big mental health advocate,” Skye said. “I think it’s very important, especially in today’s society. That’s something I want to pursue in my future. I want to be a psychiatrist when I’m older. When I saw that the suicide rates were rising and mental health crisis rates were rising at a younger age, I wanted to jump in. I’ve been involved in Girl Scouts, so I knew that I needed to do something for my Gold Award, but it kind of all fell into place with mental health advocacy. That is something really important to me.

“What I did was I created bracelets, and they said ‘YANA’ on them, which stands for ‘You Are Never Alone.’ I made them with the middle school students (at Veronica Connor Middle School): the sixth and eighth graders for the WEB days, on WEB Friday. And then, I created slide show presentations for all the various WEB Fridays they have throughout each month. And then, I also did the bracelets with the community education program that Sherry Steffans ran at Huth Road Elementary School, and she’s a board member. I also partnered with the school psychologist at Sidway Primary School, and I interned with her and just got a grasp for psychology and how young it truly does develop at the primary levels.

“I felt it went really well. It’s something I am really passionate about. I think everyone struggles with mental health, whether they’re vocal about it or shy about it. I think it’s something very prevalent in today’s society. I really wanted to jump on board with the mental health advocacy and just create change, and I felt that I did create change. I also created a website that has my slideshow links and my bracelet designs with a step-by-step process on how to create the bracelets. I created it through the school, so only school people can access it.”

At the meeting, Grand Island Central School District Superintendent Brian Graham explained Skye “partnered with ‘Where Everyone Belongs’ at the middle school to address the growing concerns surrounding youth mental health and suicide prevention. She took an active role in WEB Fridays at our middle school, organizing and delivering impactful mental health activities, including making the initiative ‘You Are Never Alone’ through celebrating that with bracelets and decorating sidewalks with uplifting messages to foster a positive school environment.

“In addition, Skye interned with Mrs. (Lauren) Stang at Sidway, where she contributed to the creation of a wellness initiative for primary students. She helped design orientation programs for our middle schoolers, as well. Demonstrating initiative and leadership, Skye met with myself to advocate for greater awareness and action around mental health.

“Through her work, she became a trusted mentor and a mental health resource for her peers and young students across the district. For Skye, mental health advocacy goes beyond earning these awards. It is a core part of her identity. She has dedicated over 150 hours to Girl Scouts, and her experiences have deeply influenced her passion for helping others.

“Skye will be attending West Chester University Honors College (in West Chester, Pennsylvania), majoring in biology, and she will be placed on a pre-med track and playing Division II rugby, which is pretty exciting. She’s also earned an early acceptance to LECOM (Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine), which is a medical school. It is a testament to your drive and your commitment and passion for helping others.”

Board of Education Vice President Susan Marston said, “I just want to say a couple of words, as I do for all our Eagle Scout recipients. … This isn’t a one- or two-year commitment. I am a first-class Girl Scout, which was the Gold Award back in the day. It really starts in kindergarten or first grade, when they first start scouting as a commitment through all of school. So, congratulations to Skye and to Rick (Pippard) and Ashli (Dreher), for their dedication to her scouting career. Skye, I wish you the best. Obviously, you’ve worked hard, and you know what dedication can do. Congratulations.”

For students who may be struggling with their mental health, Skye said, “Our social worker, Mr. (Brodie) Kaiser, is great. Mrs. (Grace) Butler and Mrs. (Christina) Kensy, the other guidance counselors, are all available, and there are QR codes all around the school so you can book appointments with them. Our school really prioritizes mental health, which I think is great.”