'Sussex County girls rock!'
A single sentence from Pathways to Success Director Fay Blake instantly captured the attention of more than 150 teenage girls from across Sussex County.
“I believe in you 100 percent.”
Blake's inspirational messages encouraged the young ladies participating in the second annual Sussex County Girls Summit at the Atlantic Sands Nov. 3 to focus on their education first, while also building confidence in themselves.
“Your mind is a powerful tool,” Blake said. “Positive change typically never happens externally from you. It happens because something inside of you wants to do better.”
The event, hosted by Pathways to Success and funded by sponsors and businesses, invited young women from Cape Henlopen High School, Sussex Tech High School, Seaford High School, Campus Community School of Dover and other local educational programs to participate in the day-long summit featuring break-out sessions, keynote speakers and lunch.
More than 100 girls were encouraged to chant, “Sussex County girls rock!” in an effort to boost confidence and get more comfortable as the summit got underway.
“I'm asking you all today to look past the surface,” said Melody Taylor, keynote speaker and Fay's daughter. “It takes passion, and it takes hard work in order to get to success.”
Cape Henlopen High School junior Taylor Morgan said the summit helps girls build confidence and teaches young women they shouldn't pretend to be something they're not just because of what other people think.
“It's really good confidence-building and it reminds girls that it's OK not to be perfect, that it's OK to just be who you are,” she said.
Taylor, who plans to study criminology at Widener University after she graduates, said Pathways to Success has made a significant difference in some of her peers' lives, which is why she volunteers as a peer mentor through the program.
Taylor already participates in Pathways to Success, but all of the girls who attended the summit will become part of the Pathways family, Blake said.
“Knowledge is something that is not a one and done,” she said. “We have to continue to sow these positive seeds, but more importantly, inform, educate and empower our young ladies.”
For more about Pathways to Success, go to pathways-2-success.org.
