by Michelle Loredo, 18, remembers one thing from the Girls Inc. of Tarrant County College Shower out of all the college materials she got.
She laughed and continued, “I know it sounds crazy, but I love Snoopy, so my favorite thing was my Snoopy umbrella.”
As part of the July event, which was organized to honor the young women’s accomplishments and give them college-related necessities, Loredo was one of 28 girls who received gifts.
A nonprofit organization in the US and Canada called Girls Inc. provides mentorship and programs to help girls become more self-assured and empowered. After learning about the group from a friend who participated, Loredo joined the Tarrant County branch in her final year of high school.
The school and dorm materials were given by community sponsors. Additionally, Coca-Cola Southwest Beverages, a local bottling company, gave each girl a laptop.
After graduating from Eastern Hills High School in Fort Worth ISD, Loredo plans to study accounting at Tarrant County College next fall. In the future, she intends to transfer and obtain a bachelor’s degree from Texas Christian University.
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Loredo was sponsored by BNSF Railway. According to JennieAnn Blair, BNSF’s audit director, she organizes the railway’s involvement in the shower. In 2016, BNSF started working with Girls Inc.
Blair met Lordeo and her dad at the shower.
Seeing the happiness and excitement on the faces of the parents and students as they sort of go through the celebration with these just graduating seniors is probably my favorite part, Blair added.
At a start event, sponsors are given profiles of the participating girls, according to Valerie Salter, director of donor engagement at Girls Inc. Some select a recipient based on a relationship to the girl’s chosen subject of study or the school she will attend.
According to the audit director, Loredo’s passion in accounting made her stand out to Blair.
“That’s always really exciting for me as an auditor,” Blair added. I truly enjoy seeing women, in particular, pursuing those more challenging accounting and finance positions.
Before the event, Girls Inc. assists shower attendees—including first-generation students who might not know what a college student needs—in creating a wish list, according to Salter. Sponsors occasionally even go above and beyond the list, she continued.
They frequently go too far in ensuring that the girls are well prepared, which we call leveling the playing field so that our girls come to college with all the necessities for their dorms and, if they live nearby, school materials, Salter said. They only need to concentrate on their schoolwork.
In the fall, Mackenzie Shores, 18, will enroll at Texas Christian University to pursue a nursing degree. As her sponsor, the school gave her a rug, cleaning goods, bedding, clothing hangers, school supplies, and a transparent bag to carry to athletic activities.
According to Shores, the occasion was quite incredible. Seeing everyone and the support was very pleasant.
Loredo agreed with this.
Since I’m the first generation attending college, I believe that being able to participate in College Shower and be able to attend college greatly benefited me and most likely other females as well, she added.
Data from Tarrant County College shows that 8,381 first-generation students were enrolled last fall. Many of the girls who took part in the shower, according to Salter, will be the first in their family to go to college.
Shores and Loredo are looking forward to fall. According to Loredo, she is most excited to get started in her studies.
According to her, I’m mostly excited to go to class, complete my assignments, and be able to declare that I’ll soon be graduating from college and earning a bachelor’s degree.
Participating in college life is Shores’ top priority.
“I’m really excited for games and just all the activities that they have because TCU is really known for their school spirit,” she said.
McKinnon Rice works for the Fort Worth Report as a reporting fellow. [email protected] is her email address.
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