Local young women honored at Hollywood luncheon featuring L.A.’s top female executive talent.

Seven Glendale-area Girl Scouts have been named Emerging Leaders by Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles in recognition of their outstanding extra-curricular accomplishments.

On Dec. 5, Heather Abrams, Morgan Beck, Mithra Bhadha, Antonia Issaevitch, Jillian Kauffman, Isabel Martos-Repath and Rachel Nakumra of La Crescenta joined hundreds of the most 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. 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 believes that being a part of Falkon Robotics Team 589 has changed her life for the better. Heather became the team’s business captain this past spring. Additionally, Heather is involved in Prom Plus Club, Amor Club, and the California Scholarship Federation. In the last two years, she has won the Youth Mentor Award three times. Heather hopes to attend the University of Pennsylvania and major in business or engineering.
Morgan Beck, a high school sophomore, is involved in French Club, California Scholarship Federation, her school’s literary and arts magazine, and helps raise money for underprivileged children as a member of Project Angel. She has been a Girl Scout for 10 years and has participated as a Twilight Camp Counselor. In the future, Morgan plans to travel the world as a travel writer, which is a path that would combine her love for writing and learning about other countries and cultures.

Mithra Bhadha has been a Girl Scout for 11 years and has earned the Girl Scout Gold, Silver, and Bronze awards. She has set her career sights on science and hopes to become a veterinarian or an aerospace engineer. She is currently a member of the National Honor Society, the Academy of Science and Medicine, and her school’s robotics team. 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. Antonia believes that good leaders lead with confidence and character every day. She hopes to attend Pepperdine University in the fall of 2015 with the career goal of practicing entertainment law.

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 and enjoys spending her free time serving as a deacon in her church, being a Girl Scout mentor, volunteering, and doing missionary work. Jillian will start coursework at the Fashion Institute Of Design and Merchandising in Los Angeles in July.

Isabel Martos-Repath, a member of the GSGLA robotics team, is a junior at Crescenta Valley Senior High School. She has earned the Girl Scout Silver and Bronze awards and is pursuing the Gold Award. She is an athlete and an incredibly happy, enthusiastic “nerd.” She is a member of the National Honor Society and the California Scholarship Federation. She is also an avid participant on her school’s FIRST Robotics Competition teams that, along with Girl Scouts, has contributed to her love of mentoring kids in robotics and her dream of becoming an engineer.

Rachel Nakamura has the great intention of graduating at the top of her class, attending college, finding a job she loves, and never losing her passion for life. She 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. She is also captain of the junior varsity basketball team and is the highest GPA scholar athlete for basketball and track.

As one of the world’s preeminent leadership organizations dedicated solely to girls, Girl Scouts has developed girls’ leadership in an accepting and nurturing environment since its inception 100 years ago in 1912. Membership in Girl Scouts is open to every girl, everywhere, in grades K-12. For more information on how to join, volunteer with, reconnect with, and support Girl Scouts, visit www.girlscoutsla.org or call 1-888-GSGLA-4-U.

Submitted by Julie BATTAGLIA