Diana Greymountain, 16, is a member of the Girl Scouts of Arizona Cactus-Pine Council.
Tomorrow, I'll be visiting the White House. I've never been to Washington, D.C., so it's very exciting. I'm going to the White House because I'm a Girl Scout and President Barack Obama will be awarding Juliette Gordon Low, founder of Girl Scouts of the USA, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
I have a connection with Mrs. Low. On March 12, 1912, in Savannah, Georgia, she founded Girl Scouts, a month before my home state of Arizona became a state. I'm from Page, Arizona, and have followed in Mrs. Low's path by becoming a Girl Scout. Tomorrow, her family will receive the Medal of Freedom -- the highest honor a civilian can get -- on Mrs. Low's behalf and I'll be there representing Girl Scouts.
I'm going because a few Girl Scouts from around the country were invited to attend and I was lucky enough to be one of them. I am working towards my Gold Award, which is the highest honor in all of Girl Scouting. I am especially proud of that because I will be the first young woman of Navajo heritage to earn the award. My project involves working with the National Park Service to refurbish a local trail. I am leading the effort to re-mark, make signage for, and rediscover the cultural significance of the Hanging Garden Trail in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area.
I've been a Girl Scout for a long time: 11 years. I enjoy Girl Scouts because of the skills I've learned and the confidence I've developed by being part of the organization. In a few years, my Girl Scouting days will come to a close. Yet I'll always be able to say I'm a Girl Scout,because once a Girl Scout, always a Girl Scout. I plan to someday help a girl earn her Gold Award like my Girl Scout advisor and neighbor Betsy Scroggs has helped me.
It will be an honor to attend the Presidential Medal of Freedom ceremony because Juliette Gordon Low has inspired me throughout my life. It was amazing to think that she founded the Girl Scouts in a time when women were not well-represented in America. Now, there are millions of us all over the country. Everywhere I go in my life, I will always meet women who were once Girl Scouts.
Tomorrow is definitely going to be a big day for Girl Scouting and for me. I admire President Obama and being able to meet him is a great honor. It's also really great that I will share the experience with family and friends, as Betsy and my brother will be with my Mom and me in Washington. So ahéhee' (thank you) to Girl Scouts because my Girl Scouting life has given me the chance to say yá'át'ééh (hello) to the President of the United States.