Staff
The “I Am Awesome! (And I Know It!)” self-esteem and empowerment retreat for young women, which is in the semi-final round vying for a share of the Aviva Community Fund, is keeping pace with the other submissions in its category.
“We’re currently in 10th place but not by much, so we need all the support we can,” stressed retreat organizer Renée Martin-Brown.
The local project needs to finish in the top 10 in order to become a finalist and receive any funding.
“Our graph is still on an incline and we have had so many ‘shares’ on Facebook,” Martin-Brown enthused.
“Thank you for filling up your news feeds for the retreat.”
The retreat was held for the first time in September at Hanson’s Hideaway Lodge in Nestor Falls.
“[The] weekend retreat nurtures positive self-esteem and confidence in young women aged 10-14,” Martin-Brown explained.
“The girls explore areas such as positive body image, peer pressure, confidence-building, understanding emotions, media influences, and much more.
“I am convinced that the retreat will give each girl who attends the tools to make confident decisions, embrace their individuality, and the courage to follow their passions,” she added.
People can vote for the retreat each day until Wednesday at 11 a.m. (CST) at www.avivacommunityfund.org/ideas/acf17336
Aviva allows you to confirm up to five e-mails addresses to vote.
“If you have multiple e-mails, please register and use those votes each day,” Martin-Brown pleaded.
“If our faithful supporters did this, we would surely be able to hang on to 10th [place]—and maybe even move up to fifth or something like that.”
Martin-Brown stressed winning a portion of the Aviva funding will help to ensure this necessary program continues to happen in our community for years to come.
It would help bring in qualified educators, as well as help offset the cost of the retreat.
Making it more affordable for parents, in turn, would open up more opportunities for girls in the district to participate.
