6 Weston high schoolers to attend Women Empowerment Awards

Jummy Akinola says she was shocked when she got the call saying she'd been picked to attend the Women Empowerment Awards gala.

"Just the thought that I was chosen and nominated for it really made me happy," said the 16-year-old from Weston Collegiate Institute.

Akinola is one of six Weston students picked for a night of networking Friday at the Park Hyatt hotel. The event is meant to celebrate changemakers in their communities and those who want to advance their careers.

The mood was giddy in the high school resource room Wednesday, where the girls sorted through fancy dresses and heels delivered especially for them as part of a pilot project meant to inspire them to chase their own ambitions.

As they picked their gowns, they told CBC Toronto they're excited for the chance to represent their neighbourhood one they say is unfairly stereotyped.

Jayda-lee Doherty, who just started Grade 12, said she's excited for the opportunity to put herself out there, something she's found hard in the past.

"I was shy or didn't feel like I deserved it," said the teenager, who is thinking of pursuing a career in writing.

"It's a good chance for us all to take this opportunity to be our full selves and our confident selves and to really just seize every moment."

Shawna-Kay Thompson, also in Grade 12, said it means a lot to go to the gala and meet other women who've overcome adversities.

"This will be a first time for me, going to people and trying to get them to know me as me and not as some person from the bad part of Weston," said Thompson, who hopes to become a social worker.

"We can be bigger than what people say."

How the pilot project got its start

The pilot is the brainchild of Karen Samuels, a mental health advocate who was nominated for the mentorship award at last year's gala.

Samuels says when she went to the gala, she realized the potential of bringing young women and showing them what's possible, especially as someone who had a hard time as a teen herself.

"I decided that I was going to pour love back into a community I felt no one cared about or actually believed a lot of negative stereotypes," she said.

Samuels brought her idea to Klaudia Zinaty, founder and president of the Women Empowerment Awards, who was immediatelyon board.

"A lot of the success that happens in life is based on the people that you meet and the networking that you do," Zinaty said. "I feel that this will be so impactful and life changing for them."

Samuels then brought inRashi Bindra, an independent stylist, who brought the girls dresses, clutches and heels from local designers.

"This is not just about putting high school girls in gowns and taking them somewhere." Bindra said. "Anyone can bring clothes, but how you feel in those clothes, how that confidence comes out is a very, very different thing. "

To get selected, the girls had to write about themselves and go through an interview, explaining what the opportunity means to them.

"These girls captivated us with their story, their narrative," said Joseph Smith, Weston's vice-principal.

Bindra said the girls will get the full VIP treatment, including hair and makeup and a walk down a red carpet something the teens say they don't take for granted.

"It definitely just feels very loving that they'll go out of their way to do something like this for us." Akinola said.

Big names expected at the gala include Ashley Callingbull, the first Canadian and Indigenous woman to win Mrs. Universe, Juno award-winning artist Keshia Chant, MPPCharmaine Williams and MP Rechie Valdez.

"I feel like being in a room with so many successful women, it automatically makes me feel elevated," said Akinola, who dreams of becoming an architectural engineer and said she's thrilled to meet women who've made it in STEM.

The gala also comes with a task. Business cards in hand, the girls will need to make at least four connections with people who could become potential mentors.

Zinaty said they want to bring more students to the gala in future years and potentially expand the pilot to more schools, something Smith would welcome.

"So many young women are looking for positive inspiration and role models," he said.

Although they're nervous, the girls said they feel energized by the chance.

"With a room full of beautiful women, I feel like we can accomplish and we can really thrive through this gala," said Thompson.

"I feel like I can succeed at anything because everybody puts their belief in me."