For Immediate Release:
May 15, 2012
Colts Neck Girl Scout recognized by freeholders
COLTS NECK, NJ - High School Junior and Girl Scout Meredith Gallagher of Colts Neck has a passion – books and literature.
Gallagher used this passion to earn the Girl Scout Gold Award, highest honor a Girl Scout can achieve. She created www.ChainReactionReviews.com, a website that shares her reviews of both classic and current books, and invites others to share their views and opinions.
The Monmouth County Board of Freeholders recently recognized Gallagher’s achievement with a certificate of appreciation. Freeholder Lillian Burry presented the certificate to Gallagher at the May 8 meeting of the Monmouth County Library Commission, an appropriate venue for Meredith’s accomplishments.
“The commission commends Meredith for her devotion to her project of an interactive website that promotes books, reading/writing initiative and the important of literature in the lives of teens. We wish her continued success in her role of literary ambassador,” said Renee B. Swartz, chair of the Library Commission.
“We appreciate all the hard work Meredith has poured into her project and we applaud her commitment to literature and reading and writing. We hope she can continue to inspire other teens to share her literary passion,” said Freeholder Burry.
The certificate reads: “Meredith is a member of Troop 792, Howell Township, and has successfully attained the Gold Award, the highest award in Girl Scouting. Meredith’s project was to create an online literary circle website entitled ChainReactionReviews.com, featuring reviews she wrote of some of her favorite works with the potential to showcase reading materials on topics that relate specifically to teens.
“Additionally, her passion for reading has earned her the title of ‘local hero’ from the 6th grade class at Cedar Drive Middle School for sharing her vision with the community. The Board of Chosen Freeholders joins with the Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore in recognizing her hard work and dedication by proclaiming this day, May 8, 2012, as Meredith Gallagher Day.”
Gallagher said she believes reading is the key to success in almost every endeavor.
“I have found that through my exposure to literary works, my writing and my verbal skills have improved immensely,’ Gallagher said. “The reading sparks a chain reaction.”
Gallagher noted that teens today are “being lured toward technology and away from the basics of reading and writing. My goal is to use the Internet and social media in the best way possible to encourage a return to quality reading and thoughtful writing which will empower my generation to communicate more effectively.”
Her website offers reviews from classics such as Jane Eyre, young adult novels such as The Lonely Hearts Club, and bestsellers such as The Life of Pi. Visitors to the site are encouraged to write their own reviews.
Gallagher’s work on the website earned her the Girl Scout Gold Award.
The Gold Award is the highest achievement within the Girl Scouts of the USA. Only 5.4% of eligible Girl Scouts successfully earn the Gold Award. Award recipients must plan and implement an individual "Take Action" project that reaches beyond the Girl Scout organization and provides a sustainable, lasting benefit to the larger community. It takes a minimum of 80 hours of work to achieve the award.
5/9/2012
For media questions, please contact:
Kenneth Sheinbaum
Director, Monmouth County Library
ksheinbaum@monmouthcountylib.org