Millstone resident earns highest scouting honor
AHS senior is one of 17 girls nationwide changing the face of Girl Scouts
BY JENNIFER KOHLHEPP
Staff Writer

SEAN DWYER Lipica Shah sings the national anthem during a dedication ceremony for Project Hope on May 14. She designed the project, a center for victims during a disaster.

MILLSTONE — Lipica Shah decided to go for the gold seven years ago.

Today, the 17-year-old Millstone resident revels in the fact that she did, as she achieved the Girl Scouts of America’s highest honor, the Gold Award. And the prize isn’t just something she can boast about — it’s something the whole community can be proud of.

“On May 14, Millstone Township held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening of Project HOPE,” said Shah, a senior at Allentown High School.

SEAN DWYER Girl Scout Troop 1559, of Millstone, listens to a speaker at the dedication ceremony for Project Hope. Girl Scout Lipica Shah designed the project.

As a junior Girl Scout in 1998, Shah initiated Project HOPE, or Helping Our People Everyday. At that time, she and about 20 other girls made up Millstone Township Girl Scout Troop 728.

“We all came up with the idea to create a center for supplies in the township where people could go in the event of an emergency or disaster,” Shah said.

SEAN DWYER Shrabnee Shah, Lipica Shah and Laura Pinhas, all of Millstone, recite the Girl Scout oath during the dedication ceremony for Project Hope in Millstone on May 14.

The girls in her troop had decided back in 1998 that they would use the idea as their project to achieve the Silver Award in 1999 when they bridged to the cadet ranking of the Girl Scouts. However, Shah said, when the time came, all the other girls in her troop decided not to continue with the organization.

“When we bridged to cadets, I was the only one to continue,” Shah said, “so at that point, I decided that I would be stubborn and finish the project on my own.”

Shah’s determination persevered, and in 2001 she achieved the Silver Award by working with Township Committeeman William Nurko to get a trailer for her project.

“The Triton International Co. donated the trailer, where we could house the supplies,” Shah said.

“After completing all of the prerequisites for the award, and getting all of the rust off the trailer and putting up the shelves,” she said, “I earned the Silver Award.”

In order to accomplish the Gold Award, which is equivalent to the Boy

Scout Eagle Award, Shah held fund-raisers and drives for goods in order to supply to the Project HOPE disaster center. She also had to earn three interest patches.

“I earned patches that related to my project,” Shah said. “I studied women’s health [and] emergency preparedness and collected goods for emergencies.”

Today, according to Shah, the trailer stands to benefit victims of natural or manmade disasters, such as floods, fires and long-term power outages in Millstone and the surrounding communities.

“If one person gets to use it to their advantage, I will call the project a complete success,” Shah said.

The trailer, which as of the ribbon-cutting ceremony will be run by the township, is stocked with all the amenities one might need in the event of a disaster. Shelves are lined with baby goods, toiletries, kitchen accessories, clothes in all sizes, blankets and toys.

“There’s anything someone may need to live for a few days,” Shah said.

Shah credits her mother and her mentor, Kathy Tollar, of Millstone, with helping her see the project through to completion.

“When you try to accomplish the Gold Award, the organization selects a mentor for you from the community,” Shah said. “Kathy Tollar was always there for me. She kept me focused.”

Regarding her mother, Shrabanee Shah, who also served as her troop leader since she joined the Girl Scouts at the age of 5, Shah said, “She has been the most important influence in this project. On the days I just wanted to give up, she kept me going, and she kept the project alive.”

Shah expects to continue her participation in the Girl Scouts by becoming a lifetime member. When she attends the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University in the fall, where she will study acting, Shah said she hopes to become a campus Scout.

“I’m already one of 17 girls nationwide that acts on the Girl Scouts of America Advisory Committee,” Shah said. “We analyze how the Scouts can better appeal to today’s girls, and then help implement changes in the Scout curriculum.

“Today,” Shah said, “it is less by the book and more empowering to women.”

As a Scout, Shah said, she has had many opportunities to accomplish things she never would have otherwise. She said the organization helps girls develop into their best selves.

“The most important lesson I learned was that in life there are 40 qualities a successful person possesses,” Shah said, “and the Girl Scouts help you develop each and every one of them.”