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Dessert First

Dessert First

Always eat Dessert First!

2024 will mark the 14th year of Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri’s signature event, Dessert First. And we will be celebrating that occasion on Leap Day—February 29, 2024 at the Chase Park Plaza Royal Sonesta Hotel.

Take the leap and be a part of the momentous evening where we will honor three outstanding Girl Scout Changemakers with academic scholarships as well as four Legacy Builders who, year after year, support more than 30,000 Girl Scouts across Eastern Missouri.

All proceeds support our leadership development programs for girls.

New this year – early bird ticket pricing available through January 31, 2024! Individual tickets will go on sale beginning Friday, October 27, 2023.

Thursday, February 29, 2024
The Chase Park Plaza Royal Sonesta
Cocktails and Tasting in the Lindell Room
Seated Dinner in the Khorassan Ballroom
St. Louis, Missouri
6-9 pm

Explore sponsor benefits at various levels of giving.

Legacy Builders

Dessert First honors one Corporate/Foundation Legacy Builder, one Individual Legacy Builder, one Community Legacy Builder and one Education Legacy Builder. The honorees are chosen because of the enormous support and service they have provided to Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri.

Past Legacy Builders

William T. Kemper Foundation
Jo Ann Taylor Kindle
FIRST® Robotics
PNC
Cynthia Heath
The St. Louis Zoo
Boeing and the Employees Community Fund of Boeing
Megan and Tim Piechowski
The Magic House
Mary Ann Altergott
Ameren Missouri
Berges Family Foundation
Centene Charitable Foundation
Commerce Bank
Crawford Taylor Foundation
Donald Danforth Plant Science Center
Emerson
Express Scripts
Marilyn Fox
Laurna C. Godwin
Carolyn Losos
Monsanto
Operation Food Search
Elsie St. Cyr
Maurita Stueck
Ann and Doug Teske
Wells Fargo
Myrtle and Earl Walker
Edward Jones
Camp Fury STL

Scholarship Awards

At this special event, we celebrate the leadership and service of outstanding Girl Scouts and award three Changemaker Scholarships of $5,000 to be used for higher education. Scholarship recipients must have earned their Gold Award, the highest recognition available to Girl Scouts.

Changemaker Scholarships made possible by:

Laurna Godwin, in memory of Corrynne Godwin
William R. Orthwein and Laura Rand Orthwein Foundation
Penny Pennington and Michael Fidler, in honor of every girl making her mark on this world

Past Scholarship Recipients:

2023 Recipients

Coumba Diallo, Tufts University
Mira Iyer, Rockwood Summit High School
Gracie Steinmeyer, Rockwood Summit High School

2022 Recipients

Anushka Rawat, Parkway South High School
Nichole Hofmann, Troy Buchanan High School

2021 Recipients

Zoey Knight, Kirkwood High School
Shruti Panda, Parkway West High School

2020 Recipients

Alexis Edgar, Francis Howell High School
Nicole Licavoli, Marquette High School

2019 Recipients

Molly Frei, Visitation Academy High School
Lillian Orskog, Kirksville High School

2018 Recipients

Brianna Dale, St. Dominic High School
Sarah Eisenman, Ladue Horton Watkins High School

2017 Recipients

Sarah Ayers, Parkway West High School
Allison Licavoli, Marquette High School

2016 Recipients

Myra Dotzel, Parkway Central High School
Jessica Thoelke, Ladue Horton Watkins High School

2015 Recipients

Amanda Blythe, Ft. Zumwalt West High School
Jamielee Buenemann, Washington High School

2014 Recipients

Lauren Gieseking, Parkway West High School
Natalie Ried, Lindbergh High School

2013 Recipients

Julia Brose, Eureka High School
Melissa LaChance, Central R-3 High School

2012 Recipients

Carolyn Beard, Clayton High School
Jazmyn Ferguson, Mary Institute and St. Louis Country Day School

2024 Dessert First Scholarship

All girls who earned their Gold Award at the 2023 Reflections Ceremony will be considered for the 2024 Dessert First Scholarship. Finalists were notified in July 2023 that they had been selected by the Dessert First Scholarship Committee for a presentation and interview. (All finalists selected for the presentation round receive a $1,000 scholarship.) The committee will announce final award decisions immediately following the presentation round in August 2023.

Girl Scouts can contact Shannon Bodenschatz at sbodenschatz@girlscoutsem.org with questions regarding the Changemaker Scholarship.

Corporate Sponsorships

Dessert First corporate sponsors invest in Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri to develop strong, well-equipped, and service-minded leaders for tomorrow’s workforce.

Girl Scouts develops a pipeline of future leaders in your organization. Girl Scouting works, and your investment in girls will impact the future leadership of your organization, of Missouri, of the United States and of the world.

New this year – The Make New Friends Reception! Join us for an additional hour of dessert tasting and mingling, exclusively for our Silver Level Sponsors and above!

Interested in a corporate sponsorship? Please contact Erin Vlasaty at evlasaty@girlscoutsem.org

Do you have questions regarding accommodation needs to be able to participate? Please contact Shannon Bodenschatz at sbodenschatz@girlscoutsem.org.

Past Participating Restaurants

Past Participating Restaurants have included:

21c Museum Hotel St. Louis
23 City Blocks Catering
Bailey’s Chocolate Bar
Bowood by Niche
Brasserie by Niche
Butler’s Pantry
Chase Park Plaza Royal Sonesta
Edibles & Essentials
Greenbriar Hills Country Club
Kaldi’s Coffee Roasting Co.
Juniper
Momma Boogie’s Small Batch Cakery
Olive + Oak
Patty’s Cheesecake
Peachy Keen Culinary Consulting
Russell’s
Ruth’s Chris Steak House
Sarah’s Cake Shop
Serendipity Homemade Ice Cream
Sidney Street Café
Southern
St. Louis Science Center
Strange Donuts
Yolklore

Presenting Sponsor

Silver Sponsor

Bronze Sponsor

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