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Santa Barbara Network For Active Women And Girls
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Lisa Braithwaite and Brenda Britsch were two women with a common goal of empowering adolescent girls to take control of their lives, break free of gender stereotypes, and grow into strong, independent women. Lisa, working in the field of domestic violence, and Brenda, researching adolescent development for her doctorate, knew they were onto something when they began to discuss sports as a way for girls and women to gain physical, social and emotional benefits traditionally available to boys and men. After months of brainstorming the idea of an advocacy organization for women and girls, they invited Kim Reese, Kira Anthofer, Jana Johnston and Ginny Benson to join the discussion. On August 14,1997, the “soon to be named group which, in general, has something to do with women and sports” held its second meeting. Six women sat in a coffeehouse discussing the possibilities of creating an organization that would bring women and girls together in celebration of sports and physical activity. The women represented all levels of athletic ability, experience and interest, from those who hadn’t participated in sports since high school, to some who had recently rediscovered the satisfaction of physical exertion, to one member who had formerly played collegiate and professional sports. The one thing all six women had in common was their belief that physical activity is fun, that it’s good for us, and that every girl and woman deserves a chance to challenge her limits, unimpeded by the limits often imposed by society. This was the birth of Body Electric. What have we accomplished? We have established the Body Electric Athletic Scholarship, a $1,000 award that is given to a female high school athlete each year at the National Girls and Women in Sports Day luncheon hosted by the Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table. We publish a bimonthly newsletter, The Buzz, reinforcing our commitment to keeping the community informed about issues relevant to our mission. We have formed alliances with members of the local athletic community as well as individuals and organizations outside Santa Barbara that share our goals. We created the Adventure Club for women and girls to gather together and challenge themselves physically by hiking, cycling, rollerblading, and participating in a wide variety of activities -- whatever they are willing to try. We provide resources to the community on gender equity and Title IX, and Title IX workshops for parents, teachers, coaches and the girls they care about. We
donate books and magazines about female athletic role models to local
schools, through our Women’s Sports Book Project. We have many projects on the drawing board, including funding additional scholarships for younger girls to attend camps or participate in club sports, thus improving their skills and their chances of receiving college scholarships. We look forward to working with the community to achieve our goals. We invite those who share our mission to contact us and find out how to get involved. Home |History |Programs | The Buzz | Links | People | Adventure Club | Why Be Fit? | Support | Title IX | Donate Body
Electric bodyelectric@bodyelectric-sb.org
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PO Box 591