Community news: Girl Scouts named Emerging Leaders, Temple Sinai honored for adding solar power
Nine Glendale-area Girl Scouts have been named Emerging Leaders by Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles in recognition of their outstanding extracurricular accomplishments.
The young women joined hundreds of other highly accomplished women in Los Angeles, along with nearly 100 additional Emerging Leaders, for a luncheon and day of mentorship at the Ray Dolby Ballroom in Hollywood on Dec. 5.
Local Girl Scouts honored were Heather Abrams, Morgan Beck, Mithra Bhadha, Antonia Issaevitch, Jillian Kauffman, Isabel Martos-Repath and Rachel Nakumra, all of La Crescenta, as well as Erick Weiler, of Montrose, and Sarah Hill, of Glendale,
The event concluded a year of celebration honoring the 100th anniversary of Girl Scouts of the USA.
Heather Abrams has been a Girl Scout for eight years. She was the team business captain of the Falkon Robotics Team 589 this past spring and has been involved in Prom Plus Club, Amor Club and the California Scholarship Federation.
Morgan Beck, a high school sophomore, has been a Girl Scout for 10 years and has participated as a Twilight Camp counselor. She helps raise money for underprivileged children as a member of Project Angel.
Mithra Bhadha has been a Girl Scout for 11 years and has earned the Girl Scout Gold, Silver and Bronze Awards. She has been a scholar athlete for three years, and was also president of Teens Fighting Cancer club.
Antonia Issaevitch has been a Girl Scout for 11 years and has earned the Girl Scout Silver and Bronze Awards. She enjoys doing community service projects with her troop and tackling challenges together as a team.
Jillian Kauffman has been a Girl Scout for 11 years. She has earned the Girl Scout Gold, Silver and Bronze Awards and has also earned the Girls LEAD Award. She is a senior at Crescenta Valley High School, is a Girl Scout mentor and deacon in her church,
Isabel Martos-Repath, is a junior at Crescenta Valley High School. She has earned the Girl Scout Silver and Bronze Awards and is pursuing the Gold Award. A participant on her school’s first Robotics Competition teams, she enjoys mentoring kids in robotics.
Rachel Nakamura has been a Girl Scout for seven years and has earned the Girl Scout Silver and Bronze Awards and is pursuing the Gold Award. She is a member of the French Club, DREAM Club, California Scholarship Federation and the British Media Club.
Erika Weiler attends La Cañada High School. She has been a Girl Scout for seven years and has earned the Girl Scout Silver and Bronze Awards. Her favorite memory of Girl Scouting is her 2011 troop visit to the Girl Scout Chalet in Switzerland.
Sarah Hill is an Ambassador Girl Scout. She has earned the Girl Scout Gold, Silver, and Bronze Awards. She attributes her leadership qualities to her 10 years in Girl Scouting. Sarah is also a member of the 2013 Tournament Troop in the Rose Parade.
For more information on how to join, call 1 (888) GSGLA-4-U.
Temple honored for adding solar power
Temple Sinai of Glendale, a reform Jewish congregation, was among five congregations that received “Energy Oscars” in four categories for their efforts to make their facilities more energy efficient.
The Glendale congregation received a “Green Building” award from the California Interfaith Power and Light, an organization of more than 560 member congregations throughout the state that works with houses of worship on energy conservation, energy efficiency and sustainable energy measures. The awards were presented in November at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco.
“We are thrilled and honored to be recognized for this achievement,” said Eddy Polon, president of Temple Sinai. “Putting up the solar panels was a significant undertaking and large expense for a congregation of our size, but our members fully embraced the project, knowing that it was good from both the financial and social perspective.
This endeavor embraces one of the congregation’s core values called Tikkun Olam in Hebrew, said Rabbi Rick Schechter, spiritual leader of Temple Sinai.
“It means ‘repairing the world’ and it is something about which our members feel very passionate. I can’t think of a better way to put such powerful words into action.”
JOYCE RUDOLPH can be reached at rudolphjoyce10@gmail.com.