Parkland Girl Scout Receives Recognition from Parkland City Commission

Parkland resident Abigail Berkowitz, who just graduated from Donna Klein Jewish Academy, was recognized by the Parkland City Commission during a recent meeting for receiving the prestigious 2026 Girl Scouts Gold Award, presented to only 5% of eligible Girl Scouts nationwide. Berkowitz was also surprised with a $5,000 scholarship that night as the Girl Scouts of Southeast Florida’s 2026 winner of the Girl Scouts of the USA Gold Award Scholarship. She will be attending Florida State University, where she’ll major in psychology.

The Gold Award recognizes girls in grades 9 through 12 who demonstrate exceptional leadership, dedication and commitment to creating meaningful, sustainable change in their communities. To earn the Gold Award, each Girl Scout must identify a community issue she is passionate about and lead a large-scale service project designed to create lasting impact.

Often described as “what you want to be remembered for,” the Gold Award leaves a lasting legacy of activism, compassion and service long after a Girl Scout’s journey ends.

Berkowitz discovered that the issue of food insecurity affects more than one million people in South Florida due to inflation, low wages and high housing costs. Not only has inflation had a negative effect on everyday essentials, but it has also significantly impacted pet care and pet food products. Pet food costs have increased more than 33% since 2019. National research demonstrates that 30 million pets face life-threatening hunger every year. Berkowitz’s project, Impact of Food Insecurity on Pets, addressed this issue by creating and teaching others how to add a Pet Food Pantry within existing food pantries and educate the public about the problem. Unfortunately, pet owners who rely on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits face the devastating reality that these funds cannot be used to buy pet food, so many feed their pets table food or feel forced to surrender their pets to overcrowded shelters. Through her partnerships with Royal Palm Christian Church, Broward County Library Parkland, Rotary Club of Coral Springs/Parkland and Nova Southeastern University, Berkowitz made numerous presentations to a wide range of audiences. Surveys showed that attendees were educated about the number of Broward County residents struggling to eat regularly, as well as those living in poverty and depending on SNAP or Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed benefits that do not cover pet food. More than 90% of respondents reported an increased understanding of pet food insecurity and over 75% said that they would support a pet food pantry in the future.