The cheers could be heard from well outside the meeting room’s doors: “Who rules? Girls Rule! Who Rules? Girls Rule! What’s that mean? I’m ‘B’ to the ‘R’ to the ‘A-V-E.’ I can do anything ’cause I’m me!” They were then replaced by the giggles of young girls, the applause of parents and the praising shouts of all.
It was the sixth annual Girls Rule! event on Saturday at Lane Community College Center for Meeting and Learning, and more than 310 people attended — roughly half of which were girls between the ages of nine and 14 and the other half their guardians. The event is put on by Ophelia’s Place, a nonprofit organization for young girls in the community, and is meant to empower young girls through a series of skill-building workshops throughout the day.
River Aaland, the program’s coordinator, was pleased with the outcome, though she wasn’t surprised at the turnout.
“The event always seems to turn out well,” she said. “Even if we are concerned about something beforehand, it goes better than expected. The excitement — from both parents and children alike — is just so evident.”
Girls Rule!, which hopes to empower young girls while also strengthening the bond between a parent/guardian and daughter, was free to the public. The day consisted of various workshops put on by an array of community organizations. Children and parents could attend a session on Indian Bollywood dance, camping skills, partner yoga, fishing skills, anime drawing, sewing, papermaking and much more. The event even hosted workshops Ophelia’s Place offers on a daily basis, such as workshops on healthy relationships and positive body image.
“It’s about strengthening the bond between parent and daughter,” Aaland said. “How often do you get to have opportunities to take workshops with your child? The norm is to drop your child off at play practice or at a soccer game. Not participate alongside them. But the event is also about empowering girls to make choices for themselves. And, most of all, it’s about convincing a girl of her strength, her bravery.”
Melissa Brown, an intern at Ophelia’s Place and a junior at the University of Oregon, was one of the event’s committee members. Brown stressed the importance of events such as these.
“There aren’t many events like this — events that are free and that strengthen the bond between a parent/guardian and daughter,” she said. “That kind of bond is very important for a child’s happiness and well-being.”
Heather Cochran, a senior at the UO and a volunteer at the event, also stressed the importance of unique programs such as these.
“Just the fact that they have something like this is great,” she said. “It’s an event that focuses on young girls in our community, on empowering them … I would have loved to do something like this at their age.”
The event also included a talk via Skype during lunch time with Winter Vinecki, a 14-year-old star triathlete who has been racing since she was five years old.
Through PowerPoint slides, Winter took the girls through her athletic journey and hardships. She talked about her father’s death of prostate cancer when she was nine, and the strong influence his death has over her career today, her trips to Kenya to promote girls’ education and the difficulties she faces sometimes in order to even reach the starting line. She spoke of bravery, strength and pushing through the struggles in order to realize a dream. She told the girls to never, ever hold back — no matter what other people think or say, no matter their sex.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re a girl,” she told the room. “Girls can do what guys do … you have to always remember that. Nothing less.”