The Golden Dozen: Troop 4905 Salutes Senior Girl Scouts

If this year’s commencement feels a bit more ‘golden’ than usual, credit Girl Scout Troop 4905’s seniors.

“It’s been a long time, if ever, that Highland Park has honored this many Gold Award Girl Scouts at graduation,” said Cynthia Bowen. She and Laura McCoy are the adult troop leaders.

All 12 of the troop’s seniors have earned Girl Scouting’s highest honor and 11 of them graduate from HPHS in May. The other, boarding school student Rosemary LeBlanc, is graduating from Virginia Episcopal School.

Troop highlights through the years have included the Girl Scouts of America 100-Year Celebration in 2012 at the State Fair of Texas, campout weekends at Camp Classen in Davis, Oklahoma, and Dragonfly Lodge in Mineola, and a 2018 trip to Savannah, Georgia.

“With so many high school activities to choose from, it is extremely rare to have this many girls in a high school troop,” Bowen said. “We have been together as a troop since first grade at Hyer, earned our Bronze and Silver Awards in middle school, and now they have all earned their Gold Awards in high school.”

Earning Gold requires high school Scouts to complete 80 hours of community service plus a leadership project. Learn more about the Troop 4905 seniors below:

Jenna Bowen, the daughter of Cynthia and Jeff Bowen, will attend the University of Oklahoma. She worked with Foster Elementary School in northwest Dallas to create a dance and pom team with instruction provided in English and Spanish.

Emily Coleman,  the daughter of Ashley and Clinton Coleman, will attend Davidson College. She replaced old plants and created new beds for the garden at Wesley Prep school and provided related instructional worksheets.

Claire Cooksey, the daughter of Holly and Jim Cooksey, will attend the University of Texas. She created 50 boxes filled with sensory and motor skills toys to help special education students at Foster Elementary School deal with stress, anxiety, and uncomfortable situations.

Emma Graham, the daughter of Lisa and Marcus Graham, will attend the University of Texas. She fundraised,  created large banners with inspirational quotes to encourage SPCA of Texas volunteers, and made snuffle mats, rope toys, and cat hiding houses.

Faith Horner, the daughter of Kim and Ken Horner, will attend Oklahoma State University. She made and delivered 100 blankets to be distributed to children at Children’s Hospital of Dallas along with a note of encouragement.

Libba Huff, the daughter of Elissa and Hank Huff, will attend Washington and Lee University. She created a seed library for Mill City Community Garden by sorting seeds by type and alphabetically, and creating a binder with growing instructions and recipes.

Rosemary LeBlanc, the daughter of Rosemary and Chris LeBlanc, will attend Pepperdine University. During the pandemic, she collaborated with artists on a mural at LifeCare Hospital with the message, “Small gestures can change the world.”

Charlotte McCoy, the daughter of Laura and Jeff McCoy, will attend the University of Arkansas. She created a student leadership program at Foster Elementary School with a Student Lighthouse Team who greeted school visitors, decorated for holidays, and made announcements.

Hannah McCoy, the daughter of Laura and Jeff McCoy, will attend the University of Texas. Her project: Recycling For Our Future. She developed a recycling program with a “Green Team” Club at Foster Elementary School and educated students, staff, and families about proper recycling techniques.

Daisy Murphy, the daughter of Roz and Scott Murphy, will attend the University of South Carolina. She replanted the boxes in the Urban Park Elementary garden, renovated other features such as arches and a butterfly garden, and created an accompanying educational binder.

Elle Polychronis, the daughter of Renee and Jeff Polychronis, will attend Texas Christian University. She expanded the library and craft areas and created a sensory area of stress-relieving items at New Friends New Life, a charity that helps victims escape human trafficking.

Caroline Woram, the daughter of Dana and Steve Woram, will attend the University of Texas. She hung inspirational quotes and provided a bookshelf, crafts, chairs, and books at Faith and Liberty, a nonprofit which provides families a space for court-ordered supervised visitation.