Rising out of bed at 5:15 am on a Saturday to empower teen girls through fitness proved to be more fulfilling than we could have ever imagined. 

On Saturday, January 12, singer/songwriter Estelle shared her time and addictive personality to help us expose 40 teen girls in New York City to the power of yoga.

Why yoga? Well, many teens (and adults) are intimidated by the workout, but its powerful benefits of relieving stress, building strength, and improving flexibility made it absolutely necessary for us to spread the word to teens about this personal practice that they can continue for a lifetime. So we teamed up with yoga instructor Leslie Fajfar, WAT-AAH!, Education Alliance, and Nike to encourage inner-city teen girls to start 2013 with the necessary tools to help them get a clear mind and a healthy body.

Joined by nearly 20 female mentors/volunteers (including actress Andrea Lewis (Degrassi), VH1 correspondent Janell Snowden, Fruition LV owner Samantha Jo Alonso, and lawyer turned fitness enthusiast Robin Arzon), high school students ages 13-18 (including rising pop girl group the Lucki Gurlz) bonded over a new experience while learning the benefits of staying healthy, staying hydrated with water, and how juicing fruits and vegetables can be healing and quite tasty.

The Education Alliance’s Sirovich Center served as the perfect backdrop for a day filled with fun, stretching, friendship, laughter, meditation, knowledge, food, and more.

Our event sponsor, WAT-AAH! kept everyone hydrated with their sugar-free water and Melanie Brown of iJuice showed us how to stay healthy in style with a delicious blend of fruits and vegetables served in champagne flutes.

Nike brought shining smiles to many faces by jump-starting their yoga journeys with yoga mats and Nike fitness apparel. After eating a healthy lunch, Model Damaris Lewis shocked us all with a surprise appearance.

And when everyone thought the day couldn’t get any better, Estelle sang a clip of her award-winning tune “American Boy” for her fans and then was equally surprised by the Lucki Gurlz when they sang an Acapella remixed rendition of the same song, which included a Happy Birthday message for the singer (Estelle has an upcoming bday on January 18th!).

Guests left with custom PRETTY GIRLS SWEAT yoga t-shirts; Nike yoga mats; MAC eyeshadow; Aveeno lotion; Nivea lotion; Taylor Swift CDs; The Wanted CDs and posters; Glee CDs; Sally Hansen nail polish; NYC + Co nail polish, WAT-AAH bottles, stickers and temp tattoos; and Dark & Lovely hair products all packaged in a PRETTY GIRLS SWEAT backpack. To sum it up, it was a moment to remember! Check out photos from the event above.

Special thanks to…

EVENT PARTNERS
WAT-AAH!, Education Alliance, Nike, The Chamber Group

MENTORS
Eugenia Blackmon, Andrea Lewis, Mo’nique Pridgeon, Robin Arzon, Samantha Jo Alonso

VOLUNTEERS
Fanny Torres, Dorris Proctor, Kaya Proctor, Aja Gatling, Andrea Cox, Janell Snowden, Joie Johnson-Walker, Marisol Martinez, Queen Ofori, Sharlynn Pierre