Kelsey Schmitt, a junior at the Episcopal School of Dallas, has been awarded the Girl Scout Gold Award for her project “What Dreams Are Made Of” that provided dozens of notebooks and art supplies to students donated by friends and members of the ESD and St. Rita Catholic Church communities. In addition to collecting the supplies, Schmitt, with the help of her ESD classmates, designed and taught a series of art and poetry camps for young girls in need of academic direction and life skills associated with the Dream Angels organization.

Dream Angels was founded in 2001 as a non-profit organization dedicated to mentoring and supporting young girls on an academic, personal, and cultural level. The organization teaches its girls to dream big, imagine the possibilities, and believe in themselves.

The award is the highest honor a Girl Scout can receive and goes to high school students who have demonstrated outstanding leadership, culminating in 80 hours of community service toward one project. Each project must demonstrate an individual’s innovation, project sustainability, and a call to action to educate.

According to the Girl Scout organization, only three percent of the group’s members receive this honor.