alumni, moxie newsletter
Jennifer
Before GFC I was shy and I didn’t have much self-confidence, I always hid in the corner. I thought everyone was smarter than me. After the first three weeks of GFC I started coming out of my little shell and participating in class more and everyone noticed. Now I’m the first person to raise my hand to go in front of the class to give a speech. In GFC they made me realize that everyone is equal and no one is better than anyone else.
For our project, we wanted to change that California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger didn't want to give driver’s licenses to immigrants. My friends and I all thought it was so unfair. But at first we didn’t know how to reach out and make a difference. And after the first few GFC meetings, our coaches helped us develop our project to go to Sacramento to talk to some state senators and Lieutenant Gov. Cruz Bustamante about this. We wanted to tell the governor that everybody is equal and he himself is an immigrant. What if he didn’t have the chance to run for governor? We met with Bustamante and he told us that he supported our idea!
That first year our project, it was really cool because we got to meet important people and the certificates that they give you at the completion ceremony are up on my wall. I feel proud of the project because not a lot of people get to meet with politicians one-on-one. Our coaches encouraged us so much. They made us feel like we were actually doing something for the community and they empowered us to do our project. When we get all quiet, they’d have a play a game and they’d always keep us going. I found that there was a lot of people out there who do believe in your cause, if you talk to them they can give you resources to accomplish things.
In GFC, I learned you could really change something that you thought you could never change. I started cooperating more with people and now I’m that person who does things in pairs. I learned that I’m very capable of doing things that I wouldn’t do before—like talking to someone on the phone, talking to adults and meeting with people like politicians. I keep telling everyone that I'm going to be the first woman president of the United States or at least one of the women presidents! Before I would have thought that I was too shy. GFC helps girls find their inner potential. Sometimes girls don’t know they can do stuff that maybe they’re really good at—like me. I used not think I could speak in front of people and now I feel that I can do anything.