Community Bridges Introduces the First Healthy Bridges Program!
From August 6 – 31, 10 girls from the CB Girls program participated in Community Bridges’ first ever Healthy Bridges program. The girls who attended the program come from various schools in Montgomery County including Eastern Middle School, Silver Spring International Middle School, Takoma Park Middle School, Montgomery Blair High School and Albert Einstein High School. The innovative program is designed to teach young girls the importance of a healthy lifestyle, physically and mentally. Weekly topics included Body Image/Self-Esteem, Fitness, Nutrition, and Goal-Setting.
- Visit to the Hidden Ridge Flower Farm to learn about the cultivation and sustaining of organic flowers
- Taking a zumba class and learning how to become a zumba instructor
- Volunteering with A Wider Circle
- Self Defense Class at Master Method Karate
- Swimming at Martin Luther King Jr. Swim Center
- Dance Class at Dance Exchange
- University of Maryland College Tour
- Camping in C&O Canal Lockhouse thanks to the C&O Canal Trust
- Tour of the Washington Sports Club and participation in fitness class
- Healthy Snack demonstration by Crossroads Community Food Network
- Smoothie Demonstration by Kids Kitchen Inc.
- Know Yourself Love Yourself Workshop
- NASA Career Workshop
Jasmine Nicholls, an eighth grader at Silver Spring International Middle School did not miss a single day of the program. “I had fun and I gained a lot of self-esteem at Healthy Bridges,” she said. To continue the healthy lessons she learned, she challenged herself to an outdoor ropes course and team-building activities.
67% of our girls learned something new about themselves over the summer. Struggling to find her voice and express herself, Valeria Escobar a seventh grader at Takoma Park Middle School came into the program with concerns that she wouldn’t have any friends. By the end of the program, Valeria made a new best friend Dayanna who helped her confidence prevail. Valeria’s guidance counselors raved at the difference they saw in her during the Takoma Park Back to School Night.
Additional results:
- 100% of girls learned about healthy eating this summer
- 100% of girls learned about new careers this summer
- 100% of girls enjoyed volunteering
- 83% of girls learned more about fitness
Thank you to Adventist HealthCare for giving us the opportunity to provide 4 weeks of programming totaling over 90 hours for our girls at Community Bridges!
