What Empowered Girls Have to Say
Hello! Our names are Anna and Mikayla. We are two Empowered Girls who participated in the first Empowered Girl Alliance weekend in 2008. We would like to tell you what this experience is all about.
The focus of the EGA weekend is to eliminate false beliefs about ourselves and to gain trust in our own abilities and potential. The weekend gives us a safe environment and a group of trustworthy women who will listen to as much of our personal stories as we wish to share and help us heal and grow. This weekend is designed for girls from all different backgrounds and you can gain from this experience whether you are happy with your life or searching for healing and help.
We are sorry that we cannot share specific details about the activities that take place over the course of the weekend. There are important reasons for this. It is essential to build trust during the weekend. The EGA weekend is a very safe environment and trust and confidentiality are ensured. Although it can be uncomfortable not to know what you will be doing, it is important to trust the process. The events of the weekend would not have the same meaning if you knew what you would be doing ahead of time. It would be like knowing what your presents are before your birthday. There are also no clocks on the weekend and this is so that we can really be in the moment.
There are also many opportunities to meet with the EGA women and girls after the weekend. There are monthly Circle meetings that affirm what we established on the weekend. We also have chances to ask questions of the women from our weekend and continue learning about the power we each have over our own lives. We also have opportunities to hang out with girls from other local weekends as well as our own. On the weekend each girl is paired with a woman to be her mentor. This is someone who can spend time with you and be there for you when you need someone. Mentors can guide you through rough patches in your life or simply listen to your problems.
To fully appreciate the benefits of the weekend it is important to devote yourself to the experience. The more you put into the weekend the more you can receive. The EGA weekend is a great learning and growing experience. We hope that you will consider coming to the EGA weekend and spreading the word about EGA.
Although I would consider myself a person who, since very young, has been very 'straight-edge' and 'on the right path,' EGA has still been invaluable to me. It wasn't so much that EGA changed who I was; it was more that I met strong women and understanding peers who reinforced who I already was in a pivotal time in my life. The community that EGA creates is truly a special one. I honestly can't think of any other type of organization or program where the people love you before they even know you. I have a hard time calling EGA a "program" though; it is a community. That is the kind of atmosphere that EGA provides.
EGA has been a particularly rewarding experience for me, and I continue to try and be as involved as I possibly can, even though I am a full time student.
Erin, Age 19
Empowered Girl, NY 2008