Girls Empowerment Camp at the Church of the Holy Trinity
This June, the Outreach Ministry was awarded an Endowment Grant from the Diocese of Maryland. The grant sponsored a five day Girls Empowerment Camp, targeting girls ages 9 to 11 years.
The vision of the camp was to give an uplifting, informative, and, hopefully, transformative experience to these young people as they prepare to enter a critical period in their lives—adolescence.
The camp focused on five modules:
◦ Healthy Mind
◦ Healthy Body
◦ Healthy Choices
◦ Creative Expression
◦ Life skills.
Each morning we started with a healthy, freshly prepared breakfast by Chef Jarmonay of Enjoui. She also made a healthy and varied lunch each day.
Speakers and instructors from diverse backgrounds came to educate our campers. For example, Dr. Carol Vidal of Johns Hopkins School of Medicine spoke about social media. Baltimore City Health Department gave a presentation on puberty. Ms. Marietta English, former president of Baltimore City Teachers Union and member of Holy Trinity talked about study skills and organization. Rev. Kate Riley gave an engaging presentation on how to make good choices.
During the week, despite the very hot weather, we also did physical activities that can be done at home with little or no equipment. Ms. Amin of Ama Wellness taught a session on yoga. We had two sessions of line dancing (including fans!) by Fitnance. We also did some ‘old school’ activities such as jump rope and playing Twister.
We encouraged campers to explore and discover their creativity. They had a session on painting landscapes, creating vision journals, and creative writing. Ms. Marpessa Grooms, member of Holy Trinity even showed the girls how to make crossbody purses from place mats!
Campers had a session on etiquette by Felder House. The following day, the girls dressed up for a tea party, complete with tea, fancy tablecloths, plates, and cutlery. This was one of their favorite activities.
It is our hope to make the camp a regular summer activity at the Church of the Holy Trinity. Many thanks to our speakers, instructors, and donors for making the Girls Empowerment Camp so special.