Grant-A-Week WINNER
"Girl's Day" Body Confidence Workshop

Written by Cynthia Menzies-Legge
40 females from grades 5-8 boarded the bus from Pinaymootang First Nations school to Eagle Bay Camp in Hilbre, Manitoba to participate in an all day “Girl’s Day”. The unique event assisted young females in becoming physically active in a variety of sports including; olympic weight-lifting, boxing, kick-box aerobics and soccer. Students had the opportunity to listen and participate with female role models including; Jan Cherlet, kick-box aerobics leader, Susanne Dandenault, olympic weight-lifter and Collette Hudson, boxer with the Thunder Warrior Boxing Club.

They also received an interactive lunch making session with Registered Dietician, Lori Petryk-Leclair. Event organizers, Kathy Smith, Peer Support Worker from Pinaymootang and Cynthia Menzies-Legge, Tribal Health Educator from Anishinaabe Mino-Ayaawin, participated on the Interlake Regional Health Authority Body Confidence Workshop sub-committee and decided to host an event of their own.

Pinaymootang Health Team members; Kathy Smith, John Letandre, Norma Anderson, Pearl Marsden and Louise Rawluk joined forces with the Pinaymootang School Team that included; Vice-Principal, Lorette Woodhouse, Physical Education Teacher, Mrs. Cam, Grade 8 Teacher, Jackie Sinclair, students; Kelsey (Grade 8 ) and Sheena (Grade 7 student) to assist with the planning.

Additional participants included seven guest health staff from other Interlake reserve communities. They were invited to be team captains for the students and to participate in all physical activities. The purpose of their visit was to gain information on how to organize a “Body Confidence- “Girl’s Day” in their community.

Guest Health staff were “pumped” and excited and by the end of the day were hoping to plan an event in their respective communities for 2002. The goal of the workshop was to raise awareness about body confidence issues for young women involved in physical activity and to increase activity levels amongst female students. We really believed we achieved this goal. Students participated in all physical activity sessions. Nobody sat out on the sidelines. Their teachers agreed that they have never seen such a positive response from their students towards physical activity.

Unfortunately, it did make a positive difference that the boys were not there. The event was sponsored by Anishinaabe Mino-Ayaawin who paid for travel costs for all health staff and presenters. AMA also partly covered costs for gift bags and “give-aways”, camp fees and the nutritious lunch and snacks that was served. Rawluks community store donated 40 deodorant sticks for the gift bags. The Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women in Sport donated $200 through the Nike Grant a Week program that will go towards the remaining rental fee of Eagle Bay Camp.

CAAWs also donated "give-aways" from Nike including rulers, posters, a water bottle, a towel, a hat and socks. We are extremely grateful towards all the organizations for their contributions. We also want to thank the Manitoba Aboriginal Sport Federation and in particular Norman Ettawacappo for assisting us in finding workshop presenters. Meegwetch.

The students completed evaluations and we received an overwhelming response from them indicating that this was a fun day, they learned something and that they enjoyed all workshops. The students asked us to come back again and thanked us for thinking of them. Students were awarded certificates of participation and were also given journals with funky gel pens to record their day experiences.

Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women and Sport and Physical Activity contact us