Boys Hope Girls Hope

Hope Ignites Boys Hope Girls Hope! Last week we hosted our annual Leadership Gathering in St. Louis! We welcomed team and board members, along with distinguished alumni, for a week of exciting and important issues like building an inclusive culture, performance management, and resource development. One topic stood out from the rest - the announcement of the future name of the organization and our theme for the coming year - Hope Ignites! President and CEO Kristin Ostby spoke about the process of finding new name for our organization and community that better reflects our identity, distinctive qualities, and the profound impact we aspire to make in the coming decade, as we work to triple our reach. A big thank you to documentary filmmaker and supporter Timmy Vatterott, who donated his time to make this beautiful video for this historic announcement! #HopeIgnites #BoysHopeGirlsHope

Closing out the Guate-Maya Immersion experience, the group encountered the beauty and history of Antigua, and mostly spent time connecting with their peers in the Esperanza Juvenil schools. From playing at recess and helping the primary school with activities, to joining classes and helping prepare the high school for a big event, the scholars got to know each other and connect in a way they likely didn't expect given the language barrier. After 10 short days, tears were shed at the end and every US scholar left Guatemala feeling like they made lifelong friends. US scholars also met with Kristin Ostby de Barillas, CEO and President of Boys Hope Girls Hope. Ostby, who lived in Guatemala for 16 years and led the development of Esperanza Juvenil with the local affiliate team, listened to scholars reflect on their immersion experiences, how it impacted them, and what they will take away from it. This Immersion Experience gave the scholars the chance to connect with peers from all over the Network, showing them the power of the wide net cast by Boys Hope Girls Hope. Not only did they get to teach each other about their cultures, but they also got to connect peer to peer with other scholars in the same program as them. The opportunity to connect these dots for our scholars and create an even bigger support group for them is invaluable! When asking each participant what they loved the most about this Guate-Maya Immersion Experience, the unanimous answer was "the friends I made." #HopeIgnites #BoysHopeGirlsHope #BHGH #Guatemala #Mayan Esperanza Juvenil (Boys Hope Girls Hope Guatemala)

Summer Spotlight: Boys Hope Girls Hope of Northeastern Ohio! During summer programming scholars get to engage in enriching activities and have the opportunity to learn more about themselves and their skill sets. Northeastern Ohio had a great summer - just look at what they’ve done so far! They've practiced football on Haslam Field with Browns alumni, visited a number of museums in the Cleveland area, celebrated Juneteenth and welcomed incoming 6th graders! #BoysHopeGirlsHope #HopeIgnites #scholars #Ohio #affiliate #summer #summerprogramming #school #fieldtrip

Summer Spotlight! Our Colorado scholars are having a great summer! As the beginning of the school year approaches, let's recap all that they have learned and accomplished in the past two months! #BoysHopeGirlsHope #HopeIgnites #scholars #Colorado #affiliate #summer #summerprogramming #school #fieldtrip #fishing #leadership #ColoradoCapitol

The annual Guate-Maya Service and Immersion Experience is in full swing! Boys Hope Girls Hope scholars and team members from the US are visiting their peers at Esperanza Juvenil in Guatemala and getting a personal introduction to this beautiful country. A few of the many highlights so far include visiting Esperanza Juvenil’s school and residential homes, working alongside Esperanza Juvenil scholars in the Mayan community of Tecpan and building classrooms for and with the local community, hiking and taking a boat ride at Lake Atitlán, tasting local honey, and keeping spirits high while getting caught in a rainstorm! #HopeIgnites #BoysHopeGirlsHope #BHGH #Guatemala #Mayan Esperanza Juvenil (Boys Hope Girls Hope Guatemala)

Boys Hope Girls Hope Network is hiring for a exciting new position: Senior Director of Philanthropic Impact! This new position is focused on cultivating major donor relationships to support our annual fund and the Hope Ignites campaign working closely with the Vice President of Advancement and CEO. Responsibilities include cultivating relationships and meeting with major donors to secure significant financial support for the Network Headquarters annual operations and $25 Million Hope Ignites campaign, which will support the goal to triple the organization’s capacity by 2035. This person will collaborate with Boys Hope Girls Hope affiliates to identify and capitalize on joint funding opportunities that align with the organization’s strategic priorities. Does this high-impact job sound exciting? Get the full details at the job listing page here!: https://lnkd.in/gt3ATg2A

In late June, we had an incredible time with 65 rising high school seniors from across our BHGH Network who flew to Santa Clara University for our Hope Ignites Envision U gathering. They were joined by 12 of our young alumni, who served as Legacy Leaders helping to guide the experience, as well as 17 fantastic team members from across our Network. The week was all about getting out of comfort zones, building new relationships with peers and mentors, having novel experiences like playing ultimate frisbee, taking a ferry to Alcatraz and exploring Chinatown, meeting professional Mexican-American women soccer players and learning about their experiences playing in the US and Mexico, connecting with admissions professionals (many of whom were 1st generation college students themselves) from 17 partner colleges from across the country and learning about Silicon Valley, technology and innovation. These times of deep connection with our community fill me up with renewed passion, urgency, and excitement about our work of helping amazing young people to discover and develop their gifts and purpose, and channel them into the next stage of their journeys ahead. Thanks to all our BHGH family and many partners who made this extraordinary week possible! Though the world feels a little chaotic right now, these young people give me incredible HOPE!

Boys Hope Girls Hope is working hard to stay connected with alumni! Network Headquarters is hosting a call open to all alumni on Thursday, July 11th at 6 pm CT . This is a wonderful opportunity to reconnect with fellow alums, share experiences, and hear updates from the organization. Your participation and insights are incredibly valuable to us, and we would be thrilled to have you join the conversation. Please use the link to register to receive the link. Once registered, you will receive a confirmation email with the call details and a link to join. Link: https://lnkd.in/g6h2GcwA

Happy Fourth of July! Today, and everyday, Boys Hope Girls Hope works to foster a community of growth as we extend opportunities to our bright and talented scholars. We wish everyone a safe and happy Independence Day! #4thofJuly #BoysHopeGirlsHope #HopeIgnites #BHGH #IndependenceDay

From applications to essays to financial aid, there are several steps to navigate when applying to college. On Wednesday at Envision U, our scholars received helpful tips from admissions counselors across the country! Many admissions leaders at the event were first-generation college students and shared their experiences and knowledge with them. Admissions leaders collaborated with each other to bring the most value to the students. They led sessions on the complicated admissions process and recent changes for college diversity, college funding and more. After receiving helpful tips, they were able to put their networking skills and college admissions knowledge to work at a college fair on Santa Clara University’s campus. Boys Hope Girls Hope expanded the impact of this invaluable day by inviting youth from other Bay Area organizations to take part in the admissions fair and seminars. We’d like to thank the following schools for being a part of our event: Santa Clara University, University of Denver, Washington University in St. Louis, Tulane University, University of Pittsburgh, Syracuse University, Georgian Court University, Emerson College, Washington State University, Smith College, Saint Louis University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston College, Middlebury College, St. Olaf College, Wake Forest University, Arizona State University, Saint Mary's College of California, and University of San Francisco. #EnvisionU #Networking #careerexploration #scholars #collegeadmissions #college #collegeprep #collegeapplications #collegebound #highereducation #highered #BoysHopeGirlsHope #HopeIgnites