A young Wareham girl is raising money to go to the heart of Silicon Valley for a national science forum and she’s using every fundraising tool there is, from cookies to crowd funding.

Julianne Matthews, a sixth-grader at Wareham Middle School, was nominated to attend the National Youth Leadership Forum: Explore STEM, focusing on science, technology, engineering and math. The forum is a six-day event that takes middle schoolers from all over the country out of the classroom and into the field.

“I like to do more of the hands-on work in science and math class,” Matthews said. “My favorite part is the lab exercises.”

She first heard of the forum when she got a letter in the mail that said her science teacher, Toni Thatcher, nominated her to go. Her family did some research and found a list of kids that were previously nominated from Wareham and thought it seemed like a great opportunity.

The forum, which is run by the for-profit education company Envision EMI, features group workshops with industry professionals that range from interactive museum visits to exercises with EMTs.

“I’m really excited to work with the EMT’s because I want be a nurse or a doctor some day,” Matthews said.

Out of San Francisco, Chicago, Philadelphia and Los Angeles, Matthews chose to attend the forum held just south of San Francisco at Menlo College because her sister, who has spent time in the bay area, told her how beautiful it was.

Matthews, who has never traveled beyond Florida, said she’s excited to travel and meet new people from around the country.

The Matthews are paying for travel costs themselves. They have already raised almost $600 in the past two weeks. Their goal is to reach $2,000 by March 6.

The Old Company Store made a donation and is allowing Julianne to hold a bake sale on Saturday, Feb. 1 to raise money.

Just like in the lab, Matthews likes to work with her hands in the kitchen and will be making all homemade food for the bake sale.

“She makes the best chocolate chip cookies in the family, not too hard and not too soft,” said her sister Nicole.

You can help Matthews reach her goal by donating to her gofundme website at http://www.gofundme.com/68qpx4 or by going to the Old Company Store at 5 Elm Street on Feb. 1 for some delicious cookies.