Peer Leaders hosted their first annual Empowerment Day in early April to promote DASACC’s (Domestic Abuse and Sexual Assault Crisis Center) mission and the dream of helping women become more confident in their lives.            Hosted in the high school cafeteria and both the competition and auxiliary gyms, volunteers from local businesses and organizations helped make Empowerment Day active.

Sensations Salon and Spa offered free haircuts to all who attended and Mary Kay Cosmetics beauty consultant by the name of Nancy Mayer gave makeup tutorials for the ladies.

“If anyone wants to learn about eye make-up or skin care, then I would teach them how to do it and sometimes I do it for them, but it’s more focused on the teaching aspect to help women,” said Mayer.

From Jazzercise to RAD’s self-defense course, participants had exercise classes to choose from as well. Physical Education and Health teacher Kim Eilenberger ran the RAD class and took names for anyone who was interested in future participation.    

“RAD is a great course to take because it teaches women basic self-defense, weapons defense, and the keychain defense,” said Eilenberger. “It helps women protect themselves from any harmful situations out in the world and it is a great part of the Warren Hills curriculum.”

The local police force also set up an activity to educate the community on drunk driving. They designed a race course made up of cones in the auxiliary gym with a pedal car and drunk goggles. The participants put on goggles that mimicked the effects of intoxication.

“We’ll be talking periodically during the pedal car activity to show the different levels of impaired in the goggles to show how dangerous it is to drink and drive,” said Detective Kyle Hayes of the Washington Township Police Department. “The key is to get through the course without touching the cones.”

Other  organizations such as Wardrobe of Hope, CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate), and the Family Support Organization had booths in the competition gym to promote their causes. For instance, the Wardrobe of Hope accepts donated clothes from generous families and then gives them to women who lack appropriate outfits for business meetings. Barbara Brady, volunteer employee, explained further

“We give out clothing to help empower women to go back to work and be self-sufficient,” said Brady. “We are helping them look good so they can be confident. It is a great place for women to come to get back up on their feet and get that job.”

Peer Leadership also set up a special prize event for the attendees of Empowerment Day. Attendees gathered tickets by visiting booths and then the tickets were entered in a raffle, wherein about 30 designer handbags and wallets were  given away.

Peer Leader Amanda Reece, who organized the event in cooperation with advisor Penny Giamoni, said said she was pleased with the day’s  turn out.

“We teamed up with Sensations Salon and Matt Hardy from DASACC, and we used the funds from Glam Day to pay for all of our activities,” said Reece. “We were able to bring in a bunch of community organizations and make this a free day for everyone to enjoy.”