Heather Latter
In an effort to secure funding and ensure its future, the “I Am Awesome! (And I Know It!)” self-esteem retreat for young women once again is seeking votes in the Aviva Community Fund competition.
But director Renée Martin-Brown noted the voting has changed since the retreat last took part in the competition back in 2013, when it ultimately captured the $45,000 grand prize.
“Every person gets 18 votes, and they can use them all up in one day and all for one project,” Martin-Brown explained, stressing it is does not require daily voting.
“We really hope that we can count on the community once again for their support,” she added.
Each registered participant can use their 18 votes at any time from now until Oct. 28.
The 15 ideas that receive the most votes in each of the two funding levels (five from each idea category) will become finalists.
“We would love to secure a top-five finish and win $5,000 for our 2017 program,” Martin-Brown said.
“If we make the top five, on top of winning the $5,000, our idea will go on to a panel of judges to see if we can, once again, be a grand-prize winner like we were in 2013.”
Martin-Brown noted the retreat is a four-day weekend experience that nurtures and develops self-esteem while covering areas such as leadership, bullying, positive body image, peer pressure, confidence building, exploring emotions, and media influences.
The participants discover more about themselves while participating in various arts-based workshops throughout the weekend.
These include drama, music, visual arts, yoga, creative writing, self-esteem education, and Internet safety all presented by professional artists and instructors.
Coming off the heels of her fourth retreat held last month at Sunny Cove Camp here, Martin-Brown said it’s more important than ever for her to find funding to keep the program going.
“The program is really making a difference in the lives of these girls,” she stressed, noting several of the girls shared their testimonies at the end of this year’s retreat.
“They remember what we say about relationships, friendships, being kind, and trying to be inclusive,” Martin-Brown noted.
“They leave the weekend feeling inspired to try new things because they have more confidence in themselves.”
But it takes funds to run the retreat, which saw 70 girls take part this year.
Martin-Brown doesn’t charge a fee to attend, but participants were asked to raise a minimum of $300 and also encouraged to participate in group
fundraising projects.
They held a “Music in the Park” fundraiser and food booths at various community events, in addition to holding their own garage sales, bakes sales, lemonade stands, tag days, and bottles drives.
Used as a “pay it forward” incentive for girls who will be attending in future years, this year’s fundraising totalled $17,000.
But Martin-Brown warned the retreat needs more funding in order to maintain its quality and effectiveness.
She has filled out some grant applications and is looking for corporate sponsors, but figured she would try the Aviva Community Fund competition once again given they were successful in the past.
“I want to thank the community in advance for their support,” Martin-Brown said.
“Let’s show them what kind of passion Northwestern Ontario has for our youth.”
For more information about the program, visit www.i-am-awesome.ca
To vote, visit www.avivacommunityfund.org/voting/project/view/16-344
