My mentee is Amya, a very sweet 10-year-old girl. I would have to say what makes our relationship so easy is the fact that Amya attends Girls Inc. so we are able to see each other daily.  Also, it helps that Amya and I live 10 minutes apart from one another, which allows us to get together more often.  Another thing that enables us to have a close relationship is that Amya has a cell phone so we communicate daily and set up plans with one another via text or with a phone call. Amya has a younger sister, Asia which can be a tricky situation but whenever her sister has accompanied us it has always been Amya's choice.  I make it a point to spend time with Amya as much as I can and when the time and situation allows her little sister Asia comes with us.
 
Amya and I have gone to the movies.  We went to Transformers 3, which was her choice J.  We’ve gone  to a relative’s birthday party; we’ve gone shopping at the Westroads or Oak View Mall.  We’ve played Bocci Ball; gone to church together; gone to my mom's house to hang out; listened to music; and had a water gun fight. We’ve gone out to eat at Red Robins, Burger King, Jimmy Johns, etc... One of the places we like to go is Sonics because we can sit in the car and just chat. 

 
One thing I like about Amya is that even though at times she is an old soul she can still be a kid and play with younger children and let herself have fun.  She is an awesome big sister - always looking out for her little sister Asia.  We don’t have to be doing anything just hanging out and that is just fine with her.  Amya just enjoys spending time with me even if that means sitting outside together talking, or watching her shows on Disney Channel like So Random, Good Luck Charlie, My Babysitter’s a Vampire or Shake it Up!   

Amya is a such a sweet, thoughtful, loving, kind, funny, caring, young lady and I am blessed to have her as my mentee.
 
I am so glad that I became a Pathfinders Mentor - it has added such wonderful experiences and memories to my life.  - Stephanie Lewis
                                                                                                                                                                            Girls Inc. staff member and Pathfinders Mentor

As part of the STEM program Build IT, the girls are creating message boards and blog accounts where they are able to chat live  with each other. During this session they learned how to develop a clear theme for a blog, making it easy to navigate and including at least four images and four links to external sources.

Now ready to finish her degree in psychology and dance this fall semester at Stephens College, Ms. Antianna was a Girls Inc. member herself when she was a girl.  She spent this summer teaching the Girls Inc. kindergarten class and teaching dance classes.  When she was a teen at Girls Inc., Antianna expressed an interest in clothing design and making her own clothes.  A board member donated a sewing machine.  Ms. Antianna is now using that very same sewing machine to make tutu's for the ballet girls dancing in the annual talent show this Friday (5:30 pm at the North Omaha Center - 2811 North 45th St).  Full circle!

We are thrilled to have Ms. Antianna with us this summer - reflecting upon what she was given at Girls Inc. and giving back to the next generation of girls.  Soon we'll be posting Ms. Antianna's college graduation photos! 

As part of our celebration of Hispanic Awareness Month, we made Ecuadorian bread sculptures today.  It takes bread, without the crusts, and lots and lots of glue.  It’s very messy.  The girls kept holding up their sticky hands and saying, Ms. Mara, I want to give you a hug!

Last week we did lessons on Mexican pottery and string art.  That was cool because the girls know I am Mexican and it helped them to get to know me a little bit better.  But today, we all learned about something new.  Half of the girls didn’t know where Ecuador is.  I showed them a map of Ecuador and I had a book about Ecuador to share with them.  So it was exciting to celebrate this new thing together and this unique art form. 

We had volunteers in the classroom from ConAgra Foods today.  One gentleman got into quite a conversation about the finer points of bread sculpture with one of our members.  Another one of the volunteers asked, “Where did this art form come from again?”  I was so excited when Amaya yelled out, “Ecuador!” - Ms. Mara

Kindergarten, 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd grade girls spent the morning participating in bubble-related literacy activities.  The day began with a read-aloud of Bubble Trouble, written by Stephen Krensky.  Girls then imagined themselves as bubbles and wrote stories about their own bubble adventures.  Mali, age 6, wrote “If I were a bubble I would be floating everywhere!”

After lunch the real fun started.  The girls went out to the Hitchcock Sports Field & Playground just east of the North facility and enjoyed a professional Bubble Party.  Three “Bubble Masters” from Yola’s Bubble Solutions helped the girls create bubbles that were as big as the girls, themselves.  Every girl got a turn with small bubble wands, big bubble wands and some girls even mastered the art of making bubbles with nothing but their own fingers.  Azuree, six-years-old, said “All of the bubble were different shapes.  I made one that was as big as an elephant!”

Following the Bubble Party, each girl received a miniature bottle of bubble soap and a bubble wand as a party favor to take home.The bubble-themed activities were offered in conjunction with the GIRLStart reading program at Girls Inc. 

Creighton Camp was a very fun and adventurous experience for the Girls Inc. members. Everyday  was packed full of activities, workshops and skill building.
The girls enjoyed learning how to play new sports and getting tips from actual coaches and players.  The girls played volleyball, basketball, softball, football, soccer and of course went swimming.  At the end of camp ceremony Girls Inc. ladies received various awards for "Most Improved", "Best Attitude" "Miss Congeniality" and "MVP."  I was very impressed with our ladies during Creighton camp and I was glad to see them so engaged and eager to learn!" - Ms. Desiree 
 

Who am I?

A Girls Club Alumni.

I remember when Girls Club  was located on Lake St. At that time girls needed to be 8 years old to attend. The first day my mom tried to enroll me, I was 7 years old and was told to come back in a year. To a seven year old, that was forever and I cried for days. But I did return!

Who am I?

The mother of a Girls Inc. Alumni.

 My daughter, Antiana Valentine, attended girls Inc. through  high school. This was one of the best adventures I could have offered her. She is now a senior in college at Stephens College in Columbia, Mo. Antiana also received a scholarship from Girls Inc. While at Girls Inc., she was paired with a mentor who sent her care packages to school, spent quality positive time with her, and is now a lifelong friend my daughter respects and views as a role model.

 During the time she attended Girls Inc., our family experienced challenges like any other family. Girls Inc. was there to provide her with dreams and creativity to pursue. She received a new sewing machine that helped her explore sewing. She traveled to Washington, D.C. and while there met Barack Obama when he was still a Senator and 'godmother of civil rights' Dorthy Height, who is now deceased, but was a Delta. This experience really had an impact and influenced her life because Barack Obama is now President and Antiana has now pledged Delta. And the list goes on..............................

Who am I?

A mother of a Girls Inc member.

 My daughter Nautika Valentine, who is 12 years old, also attends Girls Inc. She loves all the different feild trips and activites. 

Who am I?

An employee at Girls Inc.

 I was affected by the current recession and lost my job. After months of searching for employment, who was there once again?  My Girls Inc. family. My short employment experience with Girls Inc. has been such a blessing for me and my family. I almost feel that my working here in some way is giving back some of love Girls Inc has given my girls. Girls Inc has given Antiana love inspiration, hope and dreams and she has now passed them on to Nautika.

Who am I?

A Girls Club Alumni, Mother of a Girls Inc Alumni, A Mother of Girls Inc. Member, and now a Girls Inc. employee. Thank You Girls Inc.!

by Antonia "Ms. Nia" Valentine

Jenna Gentzler, a student of ceramics at Kansas State University, taught a workshop for ten 9 to 12-year-old girls today.

"The girls did a great job.  They were good listeners and paid attention to instructions.  They were so eager to see my demonstration at first they they crowded too close.  I had to have them move away a bit to give myself some room to work.  They were especially excited to learn how to add the details to their pots once we got to that point in the project.  They were good at cricitcal thinking.  They had to figure out what to do if there was a problem; how to fix a weak spot or what to do if something went wrong with their design.  They had to problem solve.  If they rolled the clay out and it stuck to the table they had to scrape it all off and try again using Saran Wrap on the table before rolling. 

The girls were very curious and had lots of questions:  Is this coil big enough?  Can I make a something that my dad can actually drink juice out of?  What kind of paint will we use?  Do I need to slip and score every piece or just the big ones?  How soon can we fire these?  Can I add a lid to mine?  Lots of questions!

The girls learned new vocabulary - slip, score, and wedge.  They learned the names of the tools we used: wooden knife and needle tools.  We also used rolling pins but I am pretty sure they already knew the name for those.  They learned how to make a coil from clay and how to build a pot using coils.  They learned how to attach small pieces to a larger piece.

My ultimate goal is to study to become an art therapist.  I really like teaching what I know and using it to develop a relationship.  When you are making something -w hen you are in the act of creating something and you are engaged with that task - it is easier to have free conversation.  I found that to be true with the girls today.  It was very easy to talk to them and to get to know them as we worked on their pots. 

I would recommend volunteering at Girls Inc.  The girls were all very sweet.  They need good influences and they need love.  I had a great time and would love to come back." - Jenna

Jenna leaves soon for study abroad in Namibia.  Among her other experiences, she will also be teaching art to girls ages 12 through 18 while she is there.  She will bring some supplies with her but will also stay flexible to see what develops, what the girls' interests are and what is available for her to use locally.  If you would like to follow her experiences (although she is not sure how often she will have computer access!), she will be blogging about her experiences at jennagentz.blogspot.com.

Thanks Jenna, for sharing your talent with Girls Inc. of Omaha.  We'll post some photos for you after the pots are glazed and fired!

Most of my kindergarten and 1st grade girls are at Girls Inc. from 7 or 7:30 a.m. until 6 p.m.  That is a long day for a little girls.  That's why we have naptime.  Usually all of them fall asleep for about 90 minutes.  Many of them even ask, "When are we going to lie down?"  They know they're tired.  They wake up right around snack time, refreshed and ready for Part 2 of the day.  (And, I'd like to add that our teen helper doesn't hate naptime either!) - Ms. Tess

Asia made her own Picasso Potato Head creation.  Then she made a rendering of her "statue."  Then she added glitter (of course) and some trim.  Voila!