PHX blog

GFC alumni Risa invited Kristen Sinema, assistant leader to the Democratic caucus in the Arizona House of Representatives, to lead a discussion with Duke Democrats.  To read the Chronicle article where GFC is mentioned click here.

To learn more about Risa, read her bio on the GFC website, click here!

STORE HOURS

Saturday:       10:00am-9:00pm

The 2008-2009 Phoenix program year was a great success! More than 30 Girl Action Teams created social change in their communities. The Girl Action Team projects addressed issues from teen pregnancy to vandalism, bullying to prejudice. Girls in Phoenix are fired up to make great changes in our community! For a full list of projects and to view the amazing work the girls in Phoenix did this past year, please click on this link. All of this could not have been done without the amazing GFC Coaches, volunteers, schools and community organizations!

In May, our Change the World Breakfast raised money and awareness for the amazing program here in Phoenix! We would also like to announce new and continuing support from our sponsors. Thank you for supporting girls in Arizona!

Girls For A Change is excited to announce that the 2008-2009 Phoenix Completion Ceremony was a huge success! This inspiring event was Thursday, April 30th at SRP’s Pera Club. More than 200 girls, plus GFC Coaches and community supporters celebrated a great year of creating change. We are also thrilled about the momentum we are taking into the fall for another wonderful program year. 

This annual event honors girls and GFC Coaches who have been working to improve their communities.The evening began with an inspiring spoken word performance by Divine Essence. Anna Maria Chavez was honored as this year’s IT Girl for her support of women and girls in Arizona. We would like to extend our gratitude to everyone who helped ensure that girls were supported and empowered at the event!

Things are heating up in Phoenix this spring for Girls For A Change! We are pleased to share the exciting news that 30 Girl Action Teams in Maricopa County are working to create lasting social change!

Our Spring into Action event on January 31st was an amazing success! We would like to extend   our gratitude to everyone who helped ensure the day ran smoothly and the girls were supported and empowered. Nearly 200 girls reported out that they had a wonderful time and came away energized to change their world. 

This event was made possible by generous donations from the following organizations and businesses.  Thank you for giving back to your communities!
Phoenix College

• Blimpie Subs and Salads
• St Mary’s Westside Food Bank Alliance
• Safeway
• Costco
• AZ Hip Hop Coalition
• Fair Trade Café
• Native New Yorker
• McCormick and Schmick’s

New Partnerships
Girls For A Change is proud to announce new partnerships with Rio Salado College, Kahala Corporation, Avnet, Freeport McMoran Copper and Gold, and SRP. We are truly grateful for the community support that makes our program possible!

Upcoming Events

April 9, 2009 - "Change Your World" Breakfast:Join us for an opportunity to hear from powerful young women about how GFC has transformed their lives and how they are transforming our world! The goal of this free event is to raise funds and community awareness for our program in Maricopa County. There is no minimum contribution.

Where: SRP Pera Club 1 E. Continental Drive Tempe AZ 85281
When:April 9, 2009, 7:30-9AM
Please RSVP by April 3rd by calling 602-677-9428 or [email protected]

April 30, 2009 -  Completion Ceremony: Join us in a celebration of Girl Action Teams!

Where: SRP Pera Club 1 E. Continental Drive Tempe AZ 85281
When: April 30, 2009, 6:30-8:30PM
For more information, email [email protected] or call 602-677-5004

GFC Phoenix has seen phenomenal success this year! 30 Girl Action Teams, serving 300 girls, together with their coaches will Spring Into Action on January 31, 2009. At the Spring Into Action training girls gather to develop valuable skills, deepen community connections and give shape to their social change projects. At GFC girls are speaking up, taking action and becoming leaders.

We want to increase our influence! YOU can help!  We want to thank the wonderful support we have received from the BHHS Legacy Foundation and the Deb Carstens Family Fund, who have allowed us to continue to empower young girls in Maricopa County to become socially active in their community and use their voice!

Our network is our greatest asset – please share the GFC message with your friends!

As the new program year starts, Phoenix has a lot to be excited about! This year we will have 30 Girl Action Teams – a 50% increase in teams from last year -  working to change their communities. We are so grateful for the coaches, school and organization liaisons, and amazing community members who have helped to make this expansion possible!

Welcome New Phoenix Staff Member!
GFC Phoenix is pleased to welcome Stephanie Garman as the Phoenix Program Manager! Stephanie will be working with over 20 Girl Action Teams and 50 coaches to help empower young girls throughout the Phoenix area. See her bio here.

New Advisory Board Members: We are excited to have 4 new members joining the Phoenix Advisory Board this year! The addition of Vicki Davis, Elizabeth Ditlevson, Vanessa Gonzalez, and Linda Recker to our already amazing board is sure to make this year in Phoenix the most successful one yet!

Vicki Davis is a manager of Key Accounts for SRP Commercial Customer Services and has a great passion for Girls For A Change and women's issues! Vicki is also involved with the Women's Interest Network at SRP, AWEE, Leadership West and Co-Chair of the Tempe ACS Relay for Life. A native of Illinois, she holds a bachelor of science degree in business administration from Morningside College in Iowa.

Elizabeth Ditlevson is Director of Domestic Violence Services for the Arizona Coalition Against Domestic Violence. Elizabeth has been a GFC coach since 2006 and coached our Girls Steering Committee last year. Elizabeth's work with the girls on the steering committee as well as her instrumental role in planning Spring Into Action and the Completion Ceremony were great assets to the organization.

Vanessa Gonzalez is the Director of Legislative Affairs for the Arizona Department of Commerce. She has been very involved in political work both in Arizona and elsewhere and has strong experience in government and political communications.  Vanessa was previously the Deputy Director of Legislative Affairs for the Governor's office.

Linda Recker is the Finance Controller for the Customer Fulfillment, Planning & Logistics Group at Intel Corporation.  She is a graduate of both the Mesa Leadership Development and Chandler Leadership Institute programs.  She spent a year as a Rotary Exchange Student in Brazil and a year as a Graduate Rotary Foundation Scholar in France.  Over the years she has volunteered with Junior Achievement, Valley Big Brothers Big Sisters, and a local literacy program

Upcoming Events:

Girls For A Change National Tour is Coming To Phoenix!
The GFC National Tour will be stopping in Phoenix the first week in October. The tour cities include Surprise, Scottsdale, and Mesa. At each school, girls will participate in a Change Your World Training to  learn about social change, discover a diverse group of social change role models, and get user-friendly tools and resources for starting change on their own! All girls will receive GFC’s Change Your World Action Kit, a how-to-guide for creating social change. We are so excited to be able to give 500 girls across the Valley the tools and resources they need to make change in their community!

Please join GFC Phoenix for an “Empower Hour” to learn about our program in the valley and how you can get involved! We hold Empower Hours monthly throughout the greater Phoenix area, visit our website for more details on upcoming dates.

New Community Partners!

We are pleased to announce new donations from the Mattel Children’s Foundation and the Ford Motor Credit Company! Thank you for supporting our program and helping to empower more girls to find their voice

GIRLS FOR A CHANGE ANNOUNCES GRANT AWARD FROM VIRGINIA G. PIPER CHARITABLE TRUST

Phoenix, Ariz. (May 27, 2008) - Girls For A Change (GFC) Phoenix is pleased to announce a grant award from Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust. The Trust will provide Girls For A Change $90,000 over a 3-year period. The grant will assist GFC in expanding their program services to reach 300 girls in Maricopa County.

A private foundation, Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust is dedicated to honoring Virginia Galvin Piper’s philanthropic commitment to changing lives and strengthening community in Maricopa County (Arizona). By investing in non profits and encouraging strategic planning for the future, Piper Trust strives to make Maricopa County a stronger, more nurturing and vibrant community.

We are so grateful for this wonderful support!

May 2008

2007-08 Phoenix Completion Ceremony – A Great Success!
GFC Phoenix’s annual end of the year celebration, the Completion Ceremony, was a huge success with more than 160 girls, 38 coaches, and 60 community members (including parent/guardians, family members and school supporters) celebrating the change girls and coaches made in Phoenix this year!  We had a 60% increase in girl attendance at this year’s event compared to last year and all 23 teams were represented. We would like to thank Rio Salado College for their generous sponsorship of the event. And a special thanks to Brooke Smith and the Phoenix Mercury for their participation and support - see GFC on their website here!

Phoenix Girl Action Team #14: Learn to Love Yourself
More than 20 teams completed social change projects this year in Phoenix! Here is one to check out:

Team 14 at Trevor Browne High in Phoenix was distraught about the way people perceive themselves negatively. The girls on the team discussed self-esteem and created a MySpace page to connect people and spread the message of self love. The girls hope that by promoting the website to their friends and families, people will visit the page and be reminded that loving your body starts first with loving yourself. See their inspiring website here. 

See all of the 2007-08 projects in “Girl Action Team Projects."

GFC in the Community
Change the World Breakfast Girls For A Change Phoenix is well on their way to changing the world! On May 7th, 2008, our Change the World Breakfast was a wildly successful and wonderfully inspiring event! We are so pleased with the generosity of the community and the phenomenal support we have received. An inspired attendee at the event wrote about the event in his blog. Check it out here. In addition to raising awareness about GFC in the Phoenix community, we were also able to make our financial goal for the event, to continue to support the program in Phoenix!

Supporters and Funders GFC is pleased to announce new partnerships with Avnet, The Phoenix Mercury, and The Maricopa County Attorney’s office! GFC Phoenix was also a finalist in the Channel 8 “Be More” Nonprofit of the Year Awards for 2008, for our outstanding and innovative work in the community.   

Be a Part of the GFC Movement – Be a GFC Coach!
Girls For A Change (GFC) empowers young women in middle school and high school to create social change in their communities. We are looking for women volunteers, called Girl Action Team Coaches, to guide girls through the process of identifying an issue in their community and then designing a project that creates change around that issue.

Coaching with GFC means partnering with girls for 9 months to tell them they are important and powerful and that they can create change. The commitment is about 15 hours per month and includes two meetings with girls per month plus trainings. We offer Coach Training, staff support and a coach manual to help guide you during the year. We provide the support you need to work effectively with girls in communities throughout the Phoenix metro area.  Women who believe in girls and the power they have to change the world should contact us today!

Contact Meghan Arrigo at 602-680-8182, email [email protected] or learn more about coaching here. GFC relies on our community network, so please help GFC spread the word about coaching! We can supply emails, postcards and fliers for any recruitment ideas you have. 

GFC Kick Off Event
In the fall of 2008, GFC Phoenix will have its first kickoff event! Look for dates to be announced this summer!

March 2008

This year’s Spring Into Action, our annual training event for girls and coaches, was a huge success! On February 9, more than 180 girls, 37 coaches and 21 volunteers were in attendance. We had a 20% increase in girl attendance compared to last year!

After compiling the girl surveys at the end of the day, girls reported the following about what they liked about their workshops. Each girl takes two workshops during the day that are aimed at teaching girls the skills they need to create change:

• Public Speaking: Girls said it helped them get over their fear of speaking in public and encouraged them to feel more confident when speaking about themselves. They also said it taught them something they can use in their everyday lives.
• Event Planning: The girls learned how to plan an event, and  how to start planning their social change projects with their teams.
• Playing With Politics: The girls thought the workshop was informative and helpful. They liked that the workshop made them think about their impact both in and outside of their communities.
• Networking For $$$: The girls got lots of ideas about how to raise money for their team projects. They also enjoyed networking with girls from other schools and having the opportunity to build confidence when talking to new people.

Girls For A Change would like to thank the following contributors for making Spring Into Action a success:

Costco
Powerbar
Bead World
Carl’s Jr.
University of Arizona
95.1 FM
Fox Restaurant Concepts
McCormick and Schmick’s

GFC in the Community
GFC Phoenix is proud to be a member of the Arizona Girls Roundtable, a monthly networking group formed for the purpose of bringing together organizations providing programs for girls. The goals are collaboration, networking and developing a collective vision for girls in Arizona.

GFC Supporters
Girls For A Change Phoenix is pleased to announce recent generous donations from Intel, Arizona Diamondbacks Foundation, The Carstens Family Fund, The Charles Becker Foundation, The Employees Community Fund of Boeing Mesa, and the IBIS Foundation. We are so grateful for the support of our community partners!

Upcoming Empower Hours/Fundraisers
February 28, GFC Board Member Michele Pino’s Office 5:30-6:30 pm
March 12, private home in Avondale 6:00-7:00 p.m.
RSVP required to: [email protected] or 602.677.9428 
SAVE THE DATE for our Change the World Breakfast on May 7, 2008. Details to follow.

Completion Ceremony Update
GFC has started to plan for our annual Completion Ceremony, the end of year event that recognizes the awesome work Girl Action Teams and GFC Coaches in Arizona do throughout the year. Stay tuned for more details!