Congratulations to Emma Foster ’18 and Jaelin Roberts ’20 for being recognized this weekend in the 2018 Girls Rock Awards given by Hardy Girls Healthy Women!
“Hosted by Hardy Girls Healthy Women “Join Hardy Girls Healthy Women National Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman, and Moxie Maine Magazine for a night of celebrating six Maine girls for their personal, academic, athletic, humanitarian and straight-up awesome achievements at our annual Girls Rock! Awards on Friday, March 2 at The Maine Girls’ Academy.
This catered ceremony is one of Hardy Girls Healthy Women’s biggest fundraisers for its annual programming that cultivates positive girl culture and supportive communities through workshops and action projects. The ceremony’s keynote speaker Amanda Gorman was named the inaugural National Youth Poet Laureate of the United States in April 2017. She was also the inaugural Youth Poet Laureate of Los Angeles, and was invited to the White House by Michelle Obama, The Poetry Foundation, The Library of Congress, Hot 97, and gave numerous readings across the United States.” see the photos with the event here.
Against the Odds Advocate
EMMA FOSTER – Orrington – Grade 12, Age 17
At two days old, Emma was diagnosed as deaf. Since she was young she’s advocated for successfully mandating the insurance companies in Maine provide hearing tests to newborns. She has conducted a “Diversity” class for future social workers, principals and students majoring in special needs at the University of Maine. Emma has participated for several years in an American Sign Language course at UMO to work with students to learn to work with deaf children. In July 2016, she was nominated to the Board of Commissioners for the Deaf/Hard-of-Hearing, Late Deafened/Blind at the State House. She is the State of Maine’s “Student Ambassador” and represents all the deaf/HOH children in the State of Maine. In August 2016, she was appointed to the Maine Educational Center for the deaf/Hard-of-Hearing (Baxter School for the Deaf) School Board and recently has been part of a subcommittee for Legislature issues at the state level representing the school board.
Entrepreneur
JAELIN ROBERTS – Bangor – Grade 10, Age 15
At age 12, Jaelin began baking macarons for her friends. In October 2016, her mom had a chance meeting with the owner of Coffee Hound Coffee Bar, a small coffee shop in Bangor. The owners of Coffee Hound tried one of Jaelin’s macarons and offered to sell them at their coffee shop. From that simple exchange grew Simply Macarons by Jaelin. Now Jaelin is cooking for customers online, by phone and on Saturday mornings at a local Bangor European Farmer’s Market. Ten percent of Jaelin’s profit goes to the nonprofit “Love Without Boundaries” to help orphaned and impoverished children.
