Guinevere Deroy was worried the fish might bite her toes, but that didn't stop her from jumping into a lake when her 3-year-old cousin fell out of a paddle boat.

For her heroism, the 8-year-old Emsworth girl will receive a medal of honor from the Girl Scouts, becoming one of the youngest recipients to receive the Lifesaving Award, according to the Girl Scouts.

The medal will be presented Monday at the Avonworth school board meeting, and members of Guinevere's Brownie troop will perform a flag ceremony.

	Lake Fong, Post-Gazette Guinevere Deroy, 8 of Emsworth, plays with her cousin Makayla Stone, left, 3, of New Brighton at Guinevere's home on Tuesday. Click photo for larger image.

Guinevere and her family were at a family reunion in Ohio in July 2005 when Guinevere and three cousins went out on a paddle boat on a small lake, while the adults stayed on shore.

Suddenly, her cousin, Makayla Stone, 3, stood up on the edge of the boat and fell into the water. Makayla's body began tilting in her life jacket.

Guinevere, who was 7 at the time, jumped into the lake, grabbed Makayla and pulled her to shore, talking to her the entire time to calm her.

She said she hesitated for only for a second before jumping into the water. "I was thinking that the fish would bite my toes, but I jumped in anyway," she said. "They do look like worms."

Makayla was crying when Guinevere reached her. "I straightened her in her life jacket and brought her to her dad," Guinevere said. "She was breathing real hard when she got to her dad."

Two 12-year-old cousins stayed in the boat.

Guinevere's mom, Maureen, is a co-leader of the Brownie troop and shared the story with the other two leaders. Unbeknownst to her, the other leaders approached the Girl Scouts Trillium Council, part of The Girl Scouts of Western Pennsylvania Regional Alliance, about nominating Guinevere for the Lifesaving Award.

Trillium Council officials said Guinevere embodied the Girl Scout mission "to build girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place."

Her heroism was recognized at a troop ceremony in May, and Guinevere, a normally shy girl, was embarrassed by the attention.

"She said, 'Mommy, I didn't do anything. I'm not a hero,' " Mrs. Deroy said. "We talked about what it means to be brave. Bravery is overcoming your fears to help somebody else."

Mrs. Deroy said her daughter's actions didn't surprise her.

"She's always been that kind of a person, a person who cares," she said. "Last summer, she had two lemonade stands for charity."

The proceeds from one lemonade stand were turned in during a Walk for Diabetes at the Pittsburgh Zoo. Proceeds from the other stand, about $14, were turned in at school to aid victims of Hurricane Katrina. Her father, Gregory, is a volunteer firefighter and had volunteered with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help Katrina victims.

Guinevere and her twin brother, Aiden, are entering third grade at Avonworth Elementary School. This summer, Guinevere joined the Avonworth Alligators swim team at the Avonworth Community Pool.

Her dream is to sing the National Anthem at a Steelers game one day.

"I saw this one girl do it on TV and I said, 'I want to do that some day,' " she said.