A Palmerton youth has earned the ultimate accolade for a Girl Scout Junior.

McKenna Gildner, of Palmerton Girl Scout Troop 3305, recently received her Bronze Award, the highest award for a Girl Scout Junior, according to Jodi Smale, co-leader of the troop.

To earn the Bronze Award, a Girl Scout Junior must be in fourth or fifth grade, be a registered Girl Scout, and have completed a Junior Journey, said Smale, who along with Brittany Mazepa, are co-leaders of the troop.

“The Girl Scout Bronze Award is the highest honor a Girl Scout Junior can achieve,” Smale said. “It’s a team effort where girls identify a community issue, research its causes, develop a solution, and work with their community to implement their plan.”

Smale said that for her project, McKenna, a fifth-grade student at SS Palmer Elementary, chose to build and paint four birdhouses that were then sealed to protect them from the weather.

“The birdhouses were donated to Mrs. Bush’s personal care home in Kunkletown,” she said. “They have been displayed on the property for residents and staff to enjoy bird watching.”

Smale said Girl Scouts must identify a project that will have an impact on their community, and added that a girl is required to develop the project on her own and consult with her troop leaders for approval, and may rely on fellow troop members to help her to carry out the project.

“I am extremely proud of McKenna for her achievement of her Bronze Award,” Smale said. “She is our final junior Girl Scout within the troop to complete this rank.”

Smale said that over the past three years, they have had 13 girls earn this award.