Published December 8, 2021 at 9:25pm.
Story by DDG Editorial Team. Photos courtesy of Girl Scouts North Texas.
Jordan Flint of Flower Mound was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia at the age of three. The following year Make-A-Wish North Texas granted Jordan a trip to Walt Disney World. Jordan, now 17 and a cancer survivor, is giving back to Make-A-Wish North Texas through her Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas Gold Award Project.
Jordan Flint is junior at Flower Mound High School and a member of the Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas. Jordan is working to complete her Gold Award project titled “Treasure the Moments with Make-A-Wish.” The Gold Award is the highest achievement within the Girl Scouts of the USA program, which is earned by only 5.4% of all eligible Girl Scouts. To earn the award, Girl Scouts must follow steps including identifying and thoroughly investigating an issue, getting help and building a team, creating and presenting a plan, gathering feedback, taking action, and educating and inspiring others. The projects are estimated to take a minimum of 80 hours to complete.
Because of her own experiences, Jordan actively seeks out opportunities to partner with Make-A-Wish to help the organization fulfill the wishes of children with critical illnesses. When it came to deciding what she would do for her Girl Scout Gold Award project, Jordan says it was a no-brainer to devote this opportunity to bringing joy to other children experiencing what she went through at a young age. “Not many people can relate to what these children are experiencing,” Jordan said. “I wanted them to remember that they’re not alone.”
While planning her project, Jordan found out that as a result of the ongoing pandemic, many wishes that involved large gatherings or air travel were postponed in order to keep wish children and families safe and healthy. She decided that her project would focus on bringing joy to children whose wishes were delayed due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Jordan came up with the idea of creating 402 “treasure boxes” to brighten the lives of North Texas wish kids who are still waiting for their wishes to be granted. Packaged in boxes decorated like treasure chests, the contents include toys, games, coloring books, and candy.
To fund the boxes, Jordan conducted initial outreach within her network, soliciting the first round of donations from family and friends. She then approached local Rotary and Lions clubs, presenting on the needs for her project and sharpening her public speaking skills in the process. Using connections with the Dallas Market Center, Jordan was able to negotiate with various manufacturers to secure donations and discounted pricing for the boxes and toys. The project allowed Jordan to expand her reach and make an even larger impact for Make-A-Wish.
“Jordan’s project is about giving back to an organization that she relates to personally,” says Gerri Gordan, GSNETX Gold Award Program Coordinator. “She used her large network of supporters to create a Gold Award project that impacted over 400 Make-A-Wish children, more than twice the number of kids from her original goal.”
In late September, Jordan rounded up a group of her supporters to pack and assemble the boxes, which have been shipped off to Make-A-Wish children in North Texas.
While she hasn’t yet completed the remainder of her Girl Scout Gold Award project, Jordan’s impact has already been demonstrated through the joy she has brought others. Her initial hope was that these care packages would bring a smile to the faces of Wish recipients. This wish has been fulfilled, as Jordan has received numerous photos of happy children and cards from recipients expressing their gratitude for the treasure boxes.
“I have known Jordan for over 10 years, from the time she was a very sick little girl with leukemia, to a thriving teenager with a heart of gold,” said Ashley Amerman, Director of Mission Integration & Engagement at Make-A-Wish North Texas. “Seeing her dedication to bringing joy to over 400 fellow wish kids who are walking a similar journey as she is has been incredibly inspiring. Jordan shows us all what is possible when you have passion, dedication, and a goal.”
Girl Scouts is building a pipeline of strong, confident girls. As the expert in how girls learn, Girl Scouts provides relevant programming that focuses on life skills, STEM, entrepreneurship, and the outdoors – helping girls develop the confidence to know they can do anything they put their minds to. Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas serves nearly 20,000 girls and 8,000 adult volunteers across 32 counties. In 2018, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas opened the STEM Center of Excellence, a 92-acre state-of-the-art camp just outside of Dallas where girls can experience programs in astronomy, robotics, coding, computer science, and more. Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas was recognized as a 2018 Tech Titan Technology Advocate Finalist, 2017 Million Women Mentors Stand Up for STEM Award, and 2016 CNM Connect Nonprofit of the Year. Learn more at gsnetx.org or call 972-349-2400.
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