GlobalGiving.org: Cultivating Young Women Leaders in Northern CA

On Track for 2012

Kristi Fudem — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 23:12:10 GMT

YWLP participants receive community award.

We would like to thank everyone who contributed to our project in 2011, as well as those who have continued to donate into the New Year. No matter the amount, your gift has made an impact on our project and for that we are grateful!

A recent success from the program involved two Young Women’s Leadership Program graduates who were recognized as Youth Community Asset Champions by the Shasta County Public Health and the Health Improvement Partnership. One of the graduates is now working as a community health outreach worker in Shasta County.

As we move into the New Year we are filled with excitement as we continue to plan for our next Young Women’s Leadership program scheduled for this summer in Chico, California. Some of the plans include inviting past participants to co-lead one of the workshops, recruitment of presenters and development of even more interactive activities.

So here’s to 2012 and the launching of another Young Women’s Leadership Program made possible by your support!

We Need Your Support

Kristi Fudem — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 18:28:03 GMT

YWLP Participants - Summer 2010

As we plan for our next Young Women’s Leadership Program scheduled for summer 2012, we must continue our fundraising efforts to ensure the program will be available for young women in the years to come.

Beginning on Wednesday, October 19, GlobalGiving is matching at 30% all online donations up to $1,000 per donor! That means every donation during this window of time will be worth more. This wonderful opportunity to maximize your donation is only available from 12:01 am EDT on October 19 until 11:59pm EDT or until the matching funds of $100,000 run out.

In addition to the 30% match, GlobalGiving is also offering a $1,000 bonus to the project that raises the most funds that day and a $1,000 bonus to the project that receives donations from the most individual donors.

Make the most of your donation to the Young Women’s Leadership Program project and donate on Wednesday, October 19!

Thank you for your continued support!

Date and Location Picked!

Kristi Fudem — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 21:51:52 GMT

Our next Young Women’s Leadership Program is scheduled for summer 2012 in Chico, California. Planning is already underway to ensure another informative and successful event for all participants.

The Young Women’s Leadership coordinators are collaborating with various local agencies and community leaders to provide a content rich program that engages and empowers future community leaders. Ongoing fundraising efforts are first and foremost in order to provide the same level of excellence as past programs.

Be a part of the next Young Women’s Leadership Program and donate today!

YWLP Participant Attends Reproductive Freedom Day!

Kristi Fudem — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 22:02:08 GMT

Ivy Lynn Wilson at Reproductive Freedom Day

Young Women’s Leadership Program participant, Ivy Lynn Wilson attended Reproductive Freedom Day in Sacramento, CA organized by the California Coalition of Reproductive Freedom.

Each year Women’s Health Specialists selects delegates who stand out as organizers in their community to attend Reproductive Freedom Day. Ivy, a past participant of the Young Women’s Leadership Program was one of the delegates selected to attend the 2011 Reproductive Freedom Day. Below is a statement from Ivy about her experience.

“Through my different roles as a student from the Anderson Union High School District, youth peer educator for Local Indians for Education and community activist for Women’s Health Specialists through the Young Women’s Leadership Program, I attended the 9^th Annual Reproductive Freedom Day in Sacramento CA on March 22, 2011.

During the conference, I applied the information that I learned to my own life experiences and values. I got to share my own opinion and represent other youth in my community.

This was a good experience for me as a young teen. I felt empowered knowing I could make a difference in my local community and at a statewide level. I had lots of fun meeting new people and going to workshops.”

Please continue to support our Young Women’s Leadership Program. Your support is what makes it possible for young women like Ivy to build self-confidence and leadership skills that they can use their entire life.

Stay tuned for our next project update where we will announce the location and date of our next Young Women’s Leadership Program!

Planning for Next Young Women’s Leadership Program

Kristi Fudem — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 20:17:48 GMT

Young Women's Leadership Program Participant

As a Young Women’s Leadership Program supporter, you are making a difference in young women’s lives. Your donations directly benefit all the young women who participate in our one week program designed to give young women the reproductive health knowledge and life skills they need to build self-confidence and leadership abilities.

As we enter into 2011, we look forward to planning our fourth annual Young Women’s Leadership Program. Using information given to us by past participants, we will tailor our training sessions to better meet the needs of the young women. Our goal is to continue to build on the successful model we started with in order to stay relevant.

Thank you for your continued support and for keeping the Young Women’s Leadership Program accessible to young women with limited access to reproductive health services and lack of resources and knowledge needed to feel comfortable with their sexuality.

Support Our Next Young Women’s Leadership Program!

Kristi Fudem — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 22:47:11 GMT

Jasmine Robinson, Program Participant

We are ready to do another Young Women’s Leadership Program and we need your support to make it happen. Below are two testimonials by participants from our most recent program held in Chico, California this past summer.

“I had a great experience at the Young Women’s Leadership Program. I learned that no matter what, there is always someone available to help you. Whether it’s about sex, families, or yourself there’s always a community resource a phone call away to help you get the information. I also learned that there are all kinds of support groups for almost any kind of situation. Overall, I had a great experience and I would recommend this program to all of my friends - especially the ones that go to the internet for advice about sex.” Jasmine Robinson, Program Participant

“The Young Women’s Leadership Program I attended in Chico, California was a very positive experience for me. I feel like I have enough information to function smoothly and an incredible circle of women I can go to if I ever need anything." Gisella William, Program Participant

Empowering young women to share their experiences and ideas; to make health-care information relevant; and to increase access to community services and other vital resources is what every participant will experience. Be a part of this amazing program and make a contribution today!

Gisella Williams, Program Participant

Chico, California Young Women’s Leadership Program a Huge Success

Kristi Fudem — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 21:17:50 GMT

Working together to build new friendships

What an AMAZING week – What a SUCCESSFUL program!

Today marks the final day of the Young Women’s Leadership Program in Chico, California. Twelve young women from within the community of Chico spent the week together learning about community services and resources, reproductive health care and life skills that will have an impact on them the rest of their lives.

Beyond Violence Alliance, 6th Street Drop-in-Center, Stonewall Alliance, Catalyst and Butte Community College are a few of the local organizations that presented to the young women. Topics ranged from teen violence, reproductive health care and how to get services, resources for homeless teens, issues facing the LGBT community and programs available to teens who want to further their education.

During their final presentations today it was evident that the young women walked away with many valuable resources that will empower them and those they come in contact with to share what they have learned. In addition to the resources they received throughout the week, this diverse group of dynamic young women created a bond with each other that is sure to last a lifetime.

I want to thank all those who have contributed to our project. Without the support of the donations we received from you, this week wouldn’t have been possible!

Please continue to contribute to the Young Women’s Leadership Program so we can continue to provide a program that empowers young community women!

Sharing what they learned

Chico YWLP 2010

Date Selected and Planning Started for the Next Leadership Program!

Kristi Fudem — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 20:50:28 GMT

Thanks to the generous contributions made by you, 12 young women in Chico, CA and neighboring rural communities will take part in our next Young Women’s Leadership Program on June 21-24, 2010.

Currently, our planning committee is working hard to make sure all materials used in the Young Women's Leadership Program are meaningful, relevant and applicable to the participant’s life. Funds received have made it possible for us to continue to provide the same rich content as our previous programs, as well as create new interactive content that will further enhance the participant’s reproductive health knowledge and life skills needed to build self-confidence and sharpen leadership abilities.

Let’s continue to work together to keep this program available to young women in Northern California and build leaders trained in reproductive health education!

New Leadership Program Scheduled for Summer 2010

Kristi Fudem — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 18:49:56 GMT

I’m excited to announce we have picked a date and location for our next Young Women’s Leadership Program and all the contributions we received this year have made it possible.

Next summer, 12 young women in the community of Chico, California will have the opportunity to participate in our unique program that helps empower participants to share their experiences and ideas; make health-care information relevant; and increase their access to community services and other vital resources.

We have fine tuned our tools, activities, outings and strategies to create a rich experience for the participants as well as build their knowledge and connections in the community they live in, helping them develop the confidence and curiosity that are necessary for success in both school and later life.

Please continue to join us in our effort to help young women gain the confidence, information and power they need to make alliances with women and become a positive, productive force in their communities.

Hearing from Past Participants

Kristi Fudem — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 18:32:56 GMT

We recently sent inquiries to past Young Women’s Leadership Program participants to gather more information to assist us in fine tuning our program curriculum. The information we gathered was insightful and confirmed that our program has a direct benefit to the young women who participate.

The young women who completed our training sessions showed significant gains in knowledge and tools to use to help themselves, their friends and their communities. In addition, we found there was a 90 percent increase in participants’ knowledge of both social and health related issues facing young people.

Jessica Hodges, a past participant wrote, “That program was awesome! It taught me so much about women’s health and county organizations. It was really great. I probably would of gone years without knowing that info. It was so fantastic that there was a program that told you the truth about things not just telling you how to avoid it with abstinence.”

We remain committed to creating a network of positive relationships and connections among youth and adults, youth peers, local organizations and community groups. Through our Young Women’s Leadership Program we know we can achieve this and more. Join us in our effort to help young women gain the confidence, information and power they need to make alliances with women and become a positive, productive force in their communities.

Your Support Helps Us Plan for the Future

Kristi Fudem — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 20:31:49 GMT

The support we received in 2008 is a key component as we plan for the future. Currently, project organizers are in the development stages of creating a facilitators guide which will assist in the successful execution of future Young Women’s Leadership Programs.

We have been fortunate enough to remain in contact with past participants to learn how our Young Women’s Leadership Program made a difference in their life. Diane Intharinh, a past participant currently working at a dentist office in her community and going to school to obtain a CNA license said, “The Young Women’s Leadership Program helped me to be able to speak for myself and my body and empower others.” It is statements like Diane’s that reinforce our commitment to offering young women an experience in sisterhood and community health education and the opportunity to learn from and be inspired by the feminist health community organizers who work in the respectful, nonjudgmental, woman-positive community of Women’s Health Specialists.

Supporting our project makes it possible for young women in rural communities to have access to the benefits the Young Women’s Leadership Program has to offer. Thank you for your continued support.

Young Women's Leadership Program Benefits From Your Continued Support

Kristi Fudem — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 22:31:55 GMT

Dear Friends,

Thanks to all that participated in the GlobalGiving Everyone Can Win! Challenge. Although we did not win the prize grant, the donations we received are greatly appreciated and will be used to help support our Young Women’s Leadership Program.

The Young Women’s Leadership Program draws on the expertise of local social service agencies and clinic peer health educators in a comprehensive program detailing STD, HIV and pregnancy prevention information in a culturally competent manner. Some portions of the program are didactic, but the main focus is on active youth participation and the sharing of relevant youth knowledge with adult and peer providers creating a dynamic, interactive process. The program opens with the group developing consensus on ground rules for the four-day session. The young women will share knowledge, particularly information related to contraception, pregnancy termination, and overall reproductive health with their peers. Collective brainstorming continues over four days, along with other innovative, engaging methods, building empowering relationships between the youth participants and providing a meaningful exchange with service providers.

Your continued support will help bring this program to additional participants in rural areas where programs like this are not available. Below is a quote from a past participant who completed the program.

“This training has taught me so much...I learned how much women look to other women for support and how important that bond is because we all go through the same things, we all have the same questions and we are all human…” -Mary Ann, Program Participant

Thank you for supporting a program that gives young women the reproductive health knowledge and life skills they need to build self-confidence and sharpen their leadership abilities.