Girl Power!
Thanks to generous friends like you this summer, The Salvation Army is inspiring girls in Harlem, New York, to dream large and reach for a bigger, better future. The annual Harlem Girls Empowerment Zone is a special one-day event held every summer that brings together girls and young women from the neighborhood to participate in a variety of workshops and activities. This year it is anticipated to be held at our new state-of-the-art Harlem Community Center. Highlights of the new center include a gymnasium, a chapel, and an outdoor terrace with a play area for children. Workshops range from financial literacy to sports, information about college, and more. These workshops are designed to boost their self-confidence, to remind them of their worth, help them learn how to overcome personal challenges, and to prioritize what’s important: self-respect, education, and self-determination. “The fact that they learn different things, they light it up,” Captain Jennifer Rosamilia says. “Just by saying their name, it makes a huge difference for them. And it boosts their self-confidence to know that they are a person, that they are being accepted, that they have value. That is the aim of The Salvation Army here in East Harlem.”