The importance of female heroines and role models

[gabosaurus]

I love that we are living in a time when young girls can have their own set of heroines and role models to look up.
Young boys have always had sports stars and leaders to look up to. Now girls can have the same.

I took my daughter, the 17-year-old girl who lives with my sister and her husband, and a friend of mine to see the Gold medal winning U.S. womens soccer team play Australia today at the Home Depot Center in Carson, which is a bit north of where we live. Of the roughly 20,000 in attendance, the majority appeared to be girls and their parents.
In addition to playing the match, the players gave a clinic and met with a lot of the girls, who held them in the same regard as both hold pro football and baseball players. It was a remarkable experience.

It was awesome to girls told that they can aspire to be more than homemakers or secretaries. Girls can accomplish anything they set their minds on.
Also, the U.S. beat Australia 2-1. :salute:

[Kathianne]

Gabby, I agree with you to an extent. There is something special of having someone that a young person can 'connect' with, may be sex, race, religion or story.

Personally as a young person my 'role models' were (don't laugh), George Washington, JFK, any astronaut, Ann Frank, Clara Barton, Jane Addams, and more. Some were women, some men. I liked the biographies I read and was inspired.

Today I've been inspired, by a 9 year old:

http://www.wxyz.com/dpp/news/boy-who-inspired-thousands-with-lemonade-stand-gets-a-fabulous-surprise-for-his-10th-birthday

google him. He is a hero.


Boy who inspired thousands with lemonade stand gets a fabulous surprise for his 10th birthday

By: Kimberly Craig (http://www.wxyz.com/dpp/about_us/staff/kimberly-craig) DETROIT (WXYZ) - Friday afternoon, Joshua Smith, who is homeschooled, had no idea of the surprise that was about to come knocking on the door.


Joshua gained national attention this summer when he raised thousands of dollars at his lemonade and popcorn stand to help the cash-strapped City of Detroit.


Kevin Cook, an executive from Playworld Systems in Pennsylvania, saw Joshua's story on World News With Diane Sawyer several weeks ago.


"My wife was sitting on the couch with me and looked at me and said 'Kevin, you are getting that young man a playground", said Cook.


And on Friday, Cook jumped on a flight from Pennsylvania to Michigan to surprise Joshua by telling him that Playworld Systems is going to build a $50,000 playground structure at a nearby park.


Playworld Systems is working with the City of Detroit to finalize the details.


And today is the perfect day for a surprise. It's Joshua's birthday. He turns 10.


Joshua told 7 Action News, "I really feel great!"


"Happy Birthday and we wanted to give this to you as part of your vision and for your birthday", said Cook as he showed Joshua a colorful rendering of the playground set that is on track for a grand opening on September 29.
The playground structure is made by Activo Playgrounds and includes elements that spin, twist and bounce.


Rhonda Smith, Joshua's mom, tells 7 Action News, "I thought about what Joshua did and always wondered Lord how can we make this lasting? Not just a week in the summertime. And so when Kevin called and said that they were actually going to have a playground for the children, I said wow! This is something that's lasting and so I was just pleased and overjoyed".



Read more: http://www.wxyz.com/dpp/news/boy-who-inspired-thousands-with-lemonade-stand-gets-a-fabulous-surprise-for-his-10th-birthday#ixzz26hF9m9Tr

[DragonStryk72]

I love that we are living in a time when young girls can have their own set of heroines and role models to look up.
Young boys have always had sports stars and leaders to look up to. Now girls can have the same.

I took my daughter, the 17-year-old girl who lives with my sister and her husband, and a friend of mine to see the Gold medal winning U.S. womens soccer team play Australia today at the Home Depot Center in Carson, which is a bit north of where we live. Of the roughly 20,000 in attendance, the majority appeared to be girls and their parents.
In addition to playing the match, the players gave a clinic and met with a lot of the girls, who held them in the same regard as both hold pro football and baseball players. It was a remarkable experience.

It was awesome to girls told that they can aspire to be more than homemakers or secretaries. Girls can accomplish anything they set their minds on.
Also, the U.S. beat Australia 2-1. :salute:

Glad you had fun, but uh, you're just wrong on the subject of role models. Let's see, Susan B. Anthony ring any bells? How about Mother Theresa, or here's one, Victoria Woodhull. Don't know her? She's the first woman to run for the presidency of the United States, and she was key in the women's suffrage movement. However, she didn't just want equal right to vote, she was trying to get equal sexual rights for women as well. Her VP running mate was Frederick Douglass, a rather prominent black man, and let's keep in mind, they were doing this in 1872. Now that's sticking your fiddly bits out there back then.

Just saying, female role models have existed as long as there have been females.