For 20 years, “Get in the Game” has been providing girls in the Chautauqua region a plethora of opportunities to try a variety of sports, ranging from rugby, soccer, basketball, track, karate, dance, and even kayaking. This program is organized by the American Association of University Women, or AAUW, in partnership with JCC, the YWCA, and Western New York Girls in Sports of United Way.

This year’s “Get in the Game” had 96 girls participate from the fourth through seventh grades, and each one would rotate through the events, in 30 minute sessions.

“They get to try something new that they possibly haven’t done before,” said Rae Lynn DeAngelo, co-chair of Get in the Game. She said that it has been a “very good reception from the girls. They’re really liking it.”

Local sports teams from JCC, Evergreen Outfitter’s, Rocky’s Self Defense, and the Fredonia State Rugby team all helped to make this event possible within the JCC Physical Education Complex. The Jamestown Jackals also helped out for the second year in a row. They would come in and dance with the kids.

Students stand by as they are awaiting the second half of the day's events. This event was organized by the AAUW, the YWCA, WNY Girls in Sports, and JCC. Submitted photo

Logan Bushey, a student from Randolph Central School, helped out as well for the first time with this event.

“I came here to help because I think it is good for girls to get together and help them feel like they are strong,” Bushey said.

The president of the Jamestown branch of AAUW, Christina Marsh, said that offering these sports is, “something that helps the girls with teamwork, and helps them learn more about sports and leadership.”

“Research tells us that those kinds of skills and qualities they learn when they are younger, they can move on to using those skills when they get older,” Marsh added.

Mike Kingsley, owner of Evergreen Outfitters who conducted the kayaking said “everybody that is involved in this, grows from it (and) enjoys seeing the youth getting involved in new sports.”

Being an organization that strives to empower women through education, research, and advocacy, the AAUW works with women, from their formative years in school, to life college and beyond. United Way and the YWCA overlap with these goals, but all of these organizations look to achieve these goals.

“AAUW and Western New York girls in sports have a really bright future ahead in working together to help this footprint become what it can be in western New York,” said Daycia Clarke, Directory of WNY Girls in Sports at United Way. “Both of us see sports as a way to open doors for all our girls,” she said

This is the first year of the Ralph C. Wilson Foundation supporting Western NY Girls in Sports, which was founded by Mary Wilson.

The national organization of AAUW is more than 130 years old, and gives out around $3.4 million per year to over 240 women to obtain their post-doc, their master’s degree, or to change careers. Janice Brown, the president of New York State AAUW, added that in order to achieve pay equity between men and women, women need to be trained how to better negotiate their salaries.

“Train 10 million women by 2022 to be able to negotiate their salaries in the work place,” Brown said. The AAUW provides an online, one-hour long workshop dedicated to salary negotiation, and can be found at salary.aauw.org.

The Jamestown YWCA Executive Director Jacqueline Phelps was glad to be helping out with this event as well.

“We are just so excited to be here. Part of our mission is empowering women,” Phelps said. She added that the event allows the girls to “learn new skills, collaborate, network with friends, and get set for their future.”

For more information, visit .aaux.org or jamestown-ny.aauw.net.