Celebrate International Women’s Day with Your Kids
This year marks the 113rd International Women’s Day. This global day is comprised of a collective of ideas; rather than an organization. This includes a celebration of the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women.
While women and girls have come a long way, there’s still a lot to fight for. Show your daughters – and sons – the importance of equality, belonging, and empowerment on IWD – and beyond. This includes celebrating in the county by attending an International Women’s Day event, volunteering, joining a local organization, and much more. Below, you will find many ideas in which you can support your daughter to foster change on a hyper local level.
Psst…attend one of these International Women’s Day events in Westchester.
Join Local Organizations
Get your daughter involved by joining a local community organization. For example, Northern Westchester Charity League partners with local non-profits, offering mothers and daughters the opportunity to give back and volunteer. Additionally, check out Girls Inc of Westchester; Good for Girls; and Girls with Impact.
Many offer ways to advance in business through entrepreneurship classes and business classes. Incredibly, Girls Inc of Westchester offers a program that focuses on health, education, and fostering independence. This includes tips for using their voice, being resilient, having a positive body image, and more.
Volunteer
Give back to the community by volunteering with your child. Check out Volunteer New York for a roster of local opportunities. Additionally, they have opportunities broken down as family opportunities and youth opportunities. In general, this includes opportunities for kids ages 13-17 as well as some joint opportunities for kids as young as 12. In Westchester, this includes being a food pantry volunteer; a volunteer with Neighbors Link to play with other kids; or participating as a kitchen prep helper, to name a few options.
Attend a Career Fair
Good for Girls is hosting an incredible career fair at Westchester Community College. This fair, specifically for girls ages 9-18, is designed to foster connections with local businesses. Additionally, attendees will enjoy interactive workshops and the opportunity to listen to and meet professional women. $25 per person. Lastly, this includes breakfast, lunch, and snacks. Westchester Community College, 75 Grasslands Road, Valhalla, NY, 10595.
Support Local International Women’s Day Events
Many local organizations are hosting International Women’s Day events such as Women Unite. This local non-profit is on a mission to help support women by providing professional development and support for education. Incredibly, this is focused on health, wellness, and sustainability.
Here, girls and their parents can meet local women and connect with members of the community. This includes Adina Williams from Carmoor; Laura Kiernan from HTIR; Jennifer Villa from the Yonkers Youth Bureau; Jessica Colon from For the People and Kids; and much more!
Additionally, enjoy authentic food, refreshments, dancing, and networking. Additionally, the event will include the chance to learn more about different health services and healing modalities from local vendors.
“Empowering women is necessary to see change across the world. Educating and providing opportunities for women to create positive impact, uplift families, improve the community and elevate our spirit. Thus, hearing each other’s story will inspire and motivate. Incredibly, breakthroughs cannot happen by ourselves,” Nicole Sturomski, founder of WMN Unite stated.
Plus, enjoy performances from La Gina Performing Arts Dance Troupe; Sound Bath from KARA; and songs by Mika Hale. Finally, the event is $33 per person. Mount Kisco Library, 100 East Main St, Mt Kisco, NY 10549.
Additionally, check out the Mount Vernon Youth Bureau Girls Embracing Maturity (GEM) for a celebration of women and local girls. Incredibly, the event is free. Mount Vernon, NY 10550.
Take an Inspire Inclusion Picture
The theme of this year’s International Women’s Day is ‘Inspire Inclusion.’ Through this campaign, IWD encourages women and men to showcase their solidarity online. This can be a picture with your kids using the hashtag #InspireInclusion. International Women’s Day is also collecting positive statements/affirmations. You and your daughter can learn more and submit here.
Encourage Your Daughter to Take Business and STEM Classes
While women make up nearly half of the workforce, many are still not paid the same as their male counterparts. Encourage your daughter to take business and/or STEM classes to foster interest with other kids her age. In Westchester, this includes classes at The STEM Alliance; summer camp at Summer Tech; and/or Team STEM at Mercy College.
Elevate Her Participation in Sports
According to the Women’s Sports Foundation, “girls have 1.3 million fewer opportunities to play high school sports than boys have.” This International Women’s Day, encourage your daughter to take sports or try something. In Westchester, check out soccer via FC Westchester; basketball at Backyard Sports; and a range of sports training programs at House of Sports.
Additionally, International Women’s Day also suggests the following ways to celebrate/support the advancement of girls and women.
- Recruit, retain, and develop female talent
- Support women and girls into leadership. Additionally, this includes decision-making, business and STEM
- Design and build infrastructure meeting the needs of women and girls
- Help women and girls make informed decisions about their health
- Involve women and girls in sustainable agriculture and food security
- Provide women and girls with access to quality education and training
- Promote the creative and artistic talent of women and girls
- Address further areas supporting the advancement of women and girls
Collectively, we all can participate to inspire change. What better way to empower and enforce change than on the hyper-local level.
