Oct. 10 ‘Girl Rising’ screening to boost Girls Inc.

The independent film Girl Rising, to be screened locally next week, features stories of nine girls from nine different countries around the world, each born into extraordinary circumstances.

On the eve of the International Day of the Girl, Oct. 11, a local screening of Girl Rising will happen at the Regal Theater at the Hudson Valley Mall, at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 10. (In case you were wondering what the International Day of the Girl exactly is, since Hallmark failed to list it on your calendar, the United Nations declared it, with the mission “to help galvanize worldwide enthusiasm for goals to better girls’ lives, providing an opportunity for them to show leadership and reach their full potential.”

A portion of the screening’s ticket sales will help fund programs for girls through Girls, Inc. — a national program engineered to empower girls through public education, ad campaigns, research and advocacy, offered locally through Ulster YWCA.

Mary Farel, director of Girls, Inc., said presently Girls Inc. has four ongoing projects, serving about 45 girls: two “economic literacy” programs with a focus on entrepreneurship for fourth-graders at George Washington and JFK elementary schools and programs on media literacy for Myer Elementary and home-schooled fourth-graders.

When asked what kind of feedback Farel hears from the girls, she said, “very positive. … [one girl said] I now know my rights and know I can make a difference.’”

Another girl told Farel that ever since joining Girls Inc., she is not afraid to be in groups anymore. “A middle-school girl says she no longer dresses for boys or to be popular. She now dresses for herself because she knows deep inside she is strong. A fifth-grade girl slides into a chair at the Girls Inc. group just coming from a day at school looking around at the other girls and says, ‘I am so glad to be here. I can just be myself when I am at Girls Inc.’ One middle school girl wants to become a documentary filmmaker after attending the Girls, Inc. REEL Girls! program.”

Tickets need to be purchased in advance — visit gathr.us/screening/5299 to buy.