3rd Annual "A Better Self for a Better World" Conference: A new tradition of paying it forward

 

The culmination of several months of planning, Marymount's by-invitation-only conference attracted more than 100 middle school girls from 39 middle schools. Participants traveled from as far as far away as Whittier and Long Beach, and Granada Thousand Oaks and Calabasas to attend this popular event.

 

The conference was originally conceived and created in the spring of 2012 by a group of Marymount students seeking to ‘pay it forward,’ with the hope of helping adolescent girls weather the often-tempestuous waters of middle school.

 

Creating a day designed to give young girls the tools necessary to better themselves as well as the world involves a great deal of forethought and planning. Conference leaders Talia Pacini ’15 and Claire Whitesell ’15 worked arduously with the executive team, (Raquel Freeman ’15, Lauren Gurbach ’16 Maddy Heldman ’16, Paula Mendoza ’15, and Jessie Zelaya ’15), an enthusiastic team of more than 30 other students, and conference mentors Sarah Jallo and Lyndsey DeMuro ’97 to create the program for the day.

 

Together, they designed presentations on a variety of topics as food for thought for the group:

 

 

All presentation topics were designed to allow for reflection, discussion and interactive small group activities. After lunch, the focus shifted to leadership in both local and global communities. Conference-goers then worked on service projects that offered an immediate impact on the local community. Participants spent the afternoon filling beauty bags and making lunches to be delivered to local shelters, and made cheery placemats and stress balls for patients at Childrens Hospital.

 

 

Marymount is grateful to Brooke Burns who offered the keynote address. In Ms. Burns’ remarks, she stressed to the group that when experiencing obstacles, challenges and even failure, "Instead of taking a step back, get ready for your come back.”

What great advice to punctuate the day.