A Featured GoGirlGo! Week Event
Published: June 2, 2008
Six of the city’s leading girl-serving organizations worked together to organize Give Girls Game, a FREE health and fitness festival designed to show girls, ages 10-16, new ways they can get active, whether by playing a sport or dancing or jumping double Dutch. The festival was held from 4-6 p.m. on May 29 at UIC’s SEO Field, 750 S. Halsted. More than 1,000 girls participated from metro Chicago-area girl-serving organizations that host programs in concert with the Chicago Public Schools. These critical organizations focus on providing physical activity and enrichment opportunities for girls on a regular basis. The 41 locations were:
(18) Women's Sports Foundation’s GoGirlGo! Chicago Programs in partnership with the Chicago Park District affiliate sites include girls from schools throughout the Chicago metro area: Austin People's Action Center, SSFBI - Pearls of Zion, Center for New Horizons, Southwest Youth Collaborative, Chicago Park District Sites: Washington, Eckhart, Harrison, Kosciuszko, Sherman, Moran, Sheridan, Sherwood, Trumbull, Lowe, Union, Cooper, Gage and Pullman
(10) Girls on the Run affiliate Chicago Public School Sites: Ariel, CICS Basil, Talman, Wittier, Jenner, Decatur, Goethe, Mark Sheridan, Pritzker and Lafayette
(13) Girls in the Game Inc. affiliate Chicago Public School Sites: Donoghue, Mayo, Healy, Namaste, San Miguel - Gary Comer Campus, Salvation Army – Englewood, Mason, Herzl, Neil, Murphy, Choir Academy, St. Gall and Marquette
After the girls visited all the festival stations and earned their Give Girls Game t-shirt, they heard brief remarks by leading Chicago businesswomen and then walked together to UIC Pavilion, where the girls ate and watched the WNBA’s Chicago Sky take on the Minnesota Lynx. The entire event gave the girls an unforgettable opportunity to witness first-hand the power and poise of professional female athletes and provided a motivating message of what can be accomplished through dedication, determination and discipline.
Sergio Rojas, NBC-5 fitness expert and former strength and conditioning coach for the Sky, emceed the Give Girls Game fitness festival. AthletiCo, which provides trainers and rehab services for the Sky, conducted warm-ups with the girls. Athletes from the women’s teams at DePaul, Northwestern, UIC and Robert Morris College, along with Sigma Lambda Gamma National Sorority, Inc. and other volunteers assisted at the event where there were 16 different activities for the girls to experience:
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Poster Making for Public Education during the March and at the Sky Game, presented by the Women’s Sports Foundation’s GoGirlGo! Chicago
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Hip-hop dance, presented by Girls in the Game
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Double Dutch jump rope, presented by Girls in the Game
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Boxing, presented by Southside Boxing
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Latin dance, presented by Chicago Park District
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Cardio kickboxing, presented by Chicago Park District
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Tackle football, presented by Chicago Force
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Underwater hockey, presented by Chicago Underwater Hockey
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Baseball, presented by Play for Life International
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Softball, presented by Play for Life International
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Rowing, presented by Chicago Training Center Rowing Athlete Program
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Dance, presented by Overton Inspirational Dance Team
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Martial arts, presented by Warrior Angels Martial Arts
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Lacrosse, presented by Northwestern University Lacrosse
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Track, presented by Robert Morris College Track
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Running and nutrition, presented by Girls on the Run-Chicago
Funding for Give Girls Game was provided through grants from the Chicago Public Schools, PepsiCo, Nike, Women’s Sports Foundation and the Chicago Sun-Times. Event organizers were the WNBA Chicago Sky’s Sky Cares Foundation, Girls in the Game, Girls on the Run-Chicago, the Women’s Sports Foundation’s GoGirlGo! Chicago program, the Chicago Park District and the Mayor’s Fitness Council.
All collaborating organizations gave generously of their time, talents, expertise and resources to impact more than 1,000 girls. The Women’s Sports Foundation donated transportation grants for 200 girls and 48 volunteers, Nike donated drawstring bags, shirts, visors and footwear for the girls. PepsiAmericas donated bottles of Aquafina water, and Clif Bar & Company donated Clif Kid Organic Twisted Fruit Ropes.
According to the Sinai Urban Health Institute, two out of three children in Chicago’s under-resourced neighborhoods are overweight or obese – more than double the national average. In addition, fewer than one in four children get 20 minutes of vigorous activity every day, but they spend an average of nearly six hours each day in front of a television or computer. Research has proven that good habits in health and physical activity help girls build self-esteem and confidence:
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Girls who do 15 minutes of moderate physical activity a day reduce their risk of obesity by almost 50 percent.
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Girls who play sports are less likely to do drugs and get pregnant, and they are more likely to get higher test scores and develop self-confidence.
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A recent Oppenheimer Funds study found that four out of five executive businesswomen played sports growing up.
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Having role models, mentors, educators and coaches who model and teach this behavior is a critical aspect of building these positive life habits. Give Girls Game by design offers an experiential impact that can be reinforced by mentors and coaches who work with girls in the public schools and girl-serving organizations.
To participate as a group or volunteer in the Fitness Festival Rally event and the Chicago Sky game that will follow next year, contact the GoGirlGo! Chicago Office at 773.478.8839 or contact Regina at RRizzo@WomensSportsFoundation.org. To donate to ensure transportation and meals for even more girls next year, contact Valerie Bushey at 773.478.8839 or VBushey@WomensSportsFoundation.org.