Local Heroes: Just For Girls & Julie Martel

“If a girl is silent, it's dangerous. She's either: about to blow up, needs a hug, falling apart, crying inside or all of the above.” –Author unknown.

All too often this silence turns into rage.  When this rage is manifested the child is
labeled as being disruptive or being a trouble maker. If you ask a young girl
she will tell you there’s too much drama. All too often the source of this drama is peer pressure, ostracizing and bullying.  There can also be circumstances at home; responsibilities are placed on children for which they are much too young, being in a broken family household. Girls at this age need help, need someone to talk to, somewhere to go; and in Manatee County a place that meets these needs is available.

Just For Girls, with headquarters in Manatee County, has a motto of “Helping Girls Achieve Their Dreams”. It has three locations for its many programs. It provides educational, developmental, and prevention based programming to all girls, many of whom are disadvantaged and impoverished; during dangerous, unsupervised hours such as before school and post school. It also features an alternative academic setting, located at their Palmetto center, for girls in 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th
grades who have trouble functioning in a traditional school setting. 

Another invaluable program is the Just For Girls Academy located at their East Center in Bradenton. This is a tuition free, public charter school that provides an innovative, research-based, quality education that meets the specific intellectual, emotional, and physical needs of girls. While starting with grades K – 3, it will expand yearly until it reaches K-8.

As they like to say, “Together, we can help local girls and young women achieve their full potential.”

There is also an important program for girls 9 – 12 on nutrition and health.  There is rising concern in regards to children and obesity.  Dr. David Katz, M.D.
is an instructor at the Yale School of Medicine and the Editor-in-Chief of the Child
Obesity Journal. He has stated that “1 in 3 children are obese”, and “By age 12, many of our children have developed the beginning stages of hardening of the arteries”.  He also has said that, “This might be the first generation of children to have a shorter life expectancy than their parents”. 

Just For Girls teaches girls, ages 9-12, about the importance of nutrition, physical fitness, and the recognition that each individual is responsible for her own health. It also addresses topics that include reproductive health and the dangers of substance abuse. Nutrition is vital not only in the formation of the adult body but also in the ability of a child to learn. For disadvantaged and impoverished girls this is critical. 

Just For Girls depends on its volunteers, one such individual is Julie Martel.  Julie is a partner in Bradenton based Platinum Catering & the current president of the Executive Network of Manatee. She is also the mother of two children; one a teenager, the other a young adult. In addition to this she manages to find time to serve on the Just For Girls Corporate Board as the Second Vice President. The Corporate Board of this non-profit organization receives no pay for its volunteer efforts, just the satisfaction being able to fill a much needed service for the community.

When she speaks about her children you hear the love in her voice, when she speaks about her catering business you hear her desire to succeed, when she speaks about Just For Girls you hear the passion in her voice to help others. She explained the origins of this passion. When she was 11 her Mom became very ill, she needed somewhere to go for support and guidance.  She said,”I wish I had something like this in my life”. She explained that Just For Girls provides now what she needed then; love and positive feedback.

She listed the needs of this organization: donations, volunteers, and sponsorships. The Just For Girls Academy has one very surprising need: participants. There are still spots open for more girls, where they will be
inspired to achieve at the highest levels. For more information just call 941 243 3954 or visit their website.

In the fall they chose a Saturday and had a tailgate party as a “friend-raiser”, an event to heighten awareness of the organization while enjoying food and football. Also included in the festivity were a silent auction and an auction sometimes referred to as pick-a-prize or penny social. Everyone attending had a lot of fun and learned more about Just For Girls. Julie made it a point of proudly mentioning that her son and daughter helped, making it a family effort. 

On Saturday, March 23^rd, from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM, they will be having a fundraiser in Bradenton at the Courtyard Marriot Riverfront on 100 Riverfront Drive West.  It is being called “Uplifting Girls” and will be a Spring Fashion Show.  It is located right next to the recently finished Riverwalk so after the event you can take the opportunity to discover a wonderful place to stretch your legs. Please come out and help them make this event an overwhelming success. 

For more  information call 941 907 2929 or email HollyQ@myjfg.org.  Sponsorships are still available. 

Julie Martel, you and all the wonderful people at Just For Girls in Manatee
County ; are everyday heroes, unsung heroes, Manasota heroes,
local heroes. Thank you for all your efforts in helping to make this a better
community.

There is a saying that says “thank heaven for little girls”,
it should be amended to say "thank heaven, in Manatee County, there is someone
to help them".

Please help support their efforts in whatever way you can. One easy way to do this is to post the link to this article on your facebook, linkedin, and twitter pages. Please help me spread the word about this wonderful organization. Thank you.

Donald C Czaplinsky

NSA Juice Plus Distributor

www.donaldcjuiceplus.com

donczap4u@hotmail.com


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