PITTSBURG, Kan. — As the two high school seniors are celebrating their recent graduations, Hailie Feagan and Kaity Popejoy have also completed projects that earned them the Gold Award, the highest achievement a Girl Scout can earn.

To receive the Gold Award, Scouts must choose an issue they are passionate about, create a project and educate others regarding the project. The Scouts must also put 80 hours of work into the project.

For Popejoy’s project, she sewed 100 cloth dolls and donated them to local hospitals and doctor’s offices. Popejoy’s inspiration came from her own experiences as a child.

“When I was a little kid, I was at the doctor a lot,” she said. “And they had a doll there that they gave me, and it meant a lot when I was younger. So, I thought I kind of wanted to do the same thing for kids.”

She named that doll “Sleepy Doll” because it helped her sleep at night, and she still has the doll to this day. Her project is called “The Sleepy Doll Project.”

“it's kind of a reminder to me that, like, I got past what I was going through as a kid, that I can still have her with me and be like she was there for it all,” she said.

Part of the requirements of the project was to ensure that it could be sustainable in the community. Popejoy made a Facebook page called “The Sleepy Doll Project” and listed the instructions on how to make the dolls. Her hope is that community members will continue the initiative and make an impact on more children.

“I guess, just the thought that somebody put the effort in to make something for them and make them feel better is nice to know, like other people care and want to be there for them, even if it's with a doll,” she said.

Popejoy recently graduated from Pittsburg High School and an online school, and she plans to attend Pittsburg State University to study biology.

Feagan’s project, “Go with the Flow,” focused on women’s menstrual health and ensuring that young girls had the education and items they needed for their first periods.

“I'm pretty vocal about feminine health, and making sure you're on top of it,” Feagan said. “It's something I really believe in. I think it should be pretty open topic about, and so I just kind of chose it because it matters to me.”

Feagan put together 100 decorative bags that contained an information card, a pad, a panty liner, a tampon, a little hand sanitizer wipe, a hair tie, ziploc baggie and a little hand lotion. She said these were all items she liked to have in her own period bag.

The “Go with the Flow” bags were given to the Northeast Middle School for administrators to distribute to girls starting their periods.

“I think all girls should have a starting point when it comes to knowing about their period and being prepared for it, Feagan said. “And if I happen to be that starting point for some of these girls, I think it's a good thing.”

On the information card, Feagan included ways for young women to create their own bags and hopefully pass on that act of kindness. She said she hopes it inspires them to give back and create period bags to donate back.

Feagan said she chose to donate the bags to Northeast because she wanted to connect more with the Arma community.

“Just the fact that I get to help all these different girls has been really cool to me,” she said.

Since completing the project, a few administrators at Frontenac High School asked questions about the initiative she started.

“It kind of really put focus on the fact that other people also care about this, and I was just very proud of, you know, my, how my work made an impact all around,” she said. “It was a super rewarding experience. I really had a great time doing it.”

Feagan just graduated from Frontenac High School and will be attending Wichita State University to pursue an education in speech language pathology. Both Feagan and Popejoy have been Girl Scouts since kindergarten.

“I could not be more proud of these girls,” Girl Scout Troupe 70215 Leader Jill Popejoy said in an email. “They have worked so hard to earn this award. Only 5-6% of Girl Scouts nationwide accomplish this. I have always admired their dedication to helping others and have watched them grow into incredible young ladies who strive to make the world a better place.”

This reporting is made possible, in part, by the Support Local Journalism Project Fund. Learn more at: southeastkansas.org/Localnews.