COMMUNITY CENTER AND FINGER LAKES COMMUNITY HEALTH SPONSOR GIRLS’ CLUB
Yates Community Center and Finger Lakes Community Health have come together to offer the Penn Yan community a “Girls’ Club.” Girls Club is a casual educational endeavor providing a safe environment for teen girls to talk about what is on their minds. This program is for middle school girls and helps to foster positive self esteem. There is a monthly theme (January was Positive Attitude, February is Healthy Relationships) which includes activities to encourage participation and discussion; such as arts and craft projects, journaling, skits and role playing and, of course, talking! Girls’ Club topics include self esteem, healthy relationships, assertiveness skills, goal setting, communication skills and more. Healthy snacks are also provided at each meeting to both expose the girls to new foods and to encourage eating fruits and vegetables over vending machine snacks. Girls’ Club meets Tuesday from 2:30-5:00 at Milly’s Pantry on Main Street, Penn Yan and Middle School girls are invited to attend. There are always adult advisors at the meetings. In charge of activities is Abby Castner, AmeriCorps Kids First Initiative, Yates Community Center, who can be reached at 536-3346 ext 3242 ybbalc@gmail.com. Other adults involved in Girls Club are Angie Laursen and Jessica
Kenneda, educators at Finger Lakes Community Health and Liz Clothier, an AmeriCorps volunteer working at Finger Lakes Community Health.
The leaders are planning that community members will want to volunteer to teach a skill (sewing, cooking, jewelry making, scrapbooking etc.) A volunteer from Watkins Glen taught a class on knitting and crocheting on February 9. If you have a skill to share, please contact Abby at the number given above.
Several area members and businesses have made donations to Girls’ Club. If you wish to support this effort, please send checks payable to Girls’ Club – YCRR to Lisa A. Miller, Project Coordinator, Yates Community Center, 111 Elm Street, Penn Yan, NY 14527, or call Miller for further information on this and other projects and programs sponsored by Yates Community Center at 315-694-1071.
Photo identification: Back Row left to right: Kaytlin Wood, Liz Clothier, Angelika Vazquez, Angie Laursen, Jessica Kenneda. Middle Row left to right: Cassidy World, Abby Church, Stephanie Corbitt, Kelsie Johnston. Front: Evelynn Pinneo
