Lunch, Lessons And Comedy At Girls Inc. Lunch For The Girls
Lunch for the Girls is an annual fundraiser for Girls Inc. of Omaha. This year will feature lessons, some humor, and will be headlined by guest speakers, and sisters, Lacey Lamar and Amber Ruffin. The luncheon will be held at the CHI Health Center Omaha (455 N. 10th St.) on Thursday, September 1 from 11:30am - 1:00pm.
“Amber is a writer for the Amber Ruffin Show on Peacock and a head writer for Seth Meyers. She appears on his show as well,” Lamar said. “She’s written for Broadway and things like that. We wrote a book together, ‘You’ll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey: Crazy Stories about Racism,’ about racism in Omaha and it became a bestseller.”
Lamar said they will be speaking to the girls at Girls Inc. who are predominately black.
“We will be letting them know that even though they will go through racist situations (if they haven’t already) they will come up throughout your whole life, but you can deal with it, and deal with it in a million different ways.”
Lacey said one way she and her sister have dealt with racism is through humor.
“My sister is a comedic writer and the way I write is also with humor,” she said. “That’s how we deal with it but it’s not how you have to deal with it.”
Lamar said throughout their book they talk about how at certain jobs you can approach racism by going to Human Resources or by using other avenues of advocacy.
“These girls need tools to deal with that and this book gives them tools to deal with it,” she said. “It gives people who are not of color the tools to not become racist or exhibit certain behaviors at work. I call this book sometimes a how-to for white people.”
Lamar said it’s a book for everyone.
“I hope the fundraiser does well,” she said. “It’s a message that everyone needs to hear. Everyone will get something out of it.”
Lamar said the tools they can use depend on the situation.
“Sometimes it’s speaking up. It is so hard for people of color to speak up at a certain job especially if you are the only one and could lose your job,” she said. “The tools of success depend on what you want the outcome to be.”
Other tools can include remaining calm.
“These situations have a thousand ways that you can react to them,” she said. “Educate yourself on the law. You really have to say, ‘what am I going to do to stop this, what am I capable of, and how far am I willing to take this.’ It’s a case-by-case basis but knowing you’re not alone in this makes it better sometimes.”
Their second book is coming out Nov. 22.
Girls Inc. addresses racism through different approaches, said Emily Mwaja, Girls Inc. Director of Programs.
Mwaja said they have been working with their staff to start talking about race equity, how to show up, and what it looks like when you’re coming to work with mostly black girls. How are you working on the “-isms” you might have? Are you in a place where if a girl is telling you that something racist happened at school or the neighbors’, will you know how to address that? You get language that they can use, read books, and also work on yourself at the same time.
Mwaja said, “We are very intentional to make sure we are showing up the best way we can with tools, by working on ourselves, and bringing the girls along so as they get older, they are going to have the tools to notice.”
“The goal is to have the girls have someone know how to relate to the racism like microaggressions,” she said. “Lacey and Amber’s book was a perfect book for the teens to read.”
Mwaja said as part of the luncheon there will be a discussion on stage with some of the girls about how they navigate every day life when they show up as black girls and black women. How do we as a community show up for them?
The Girls Inc. Lunch for the Girls luncheon is the biggest fundraiser of the year. It funds the Girls Inc. experience for the girls, helping girls cultivate learning skills, career and life planning, health and wellness and others.
Mwaja said Girls Inc. is looking for men and women who have talents to share with the girls.
“We set up Girls Inc. to inspire girls to be strong, smart and bold, to be healthy, educated and independent,” she said. “We provide support for girls ages 5 through 18 in Omaha and Lincoln, and we have independent living for college girls that have aged out of foster care from 19-24.”
About Girls Inc.
Girls Inc. opened its first center in 1975, and currently operates two locations in north and south Omaha. Serving over 2,000 girls through its centers and outreach programs, Girls Inc. provides transportation from more than 50 schools in the Omaha area. Girls Inc.’s programs cultivate learning and skill development in the areas of academic support and enrichment; career and life planning; self-reliance and life skills; health and wellness; leadership and community action; and culture and heritage. Curriculum and activities are chosen to be intrinsically appealing to girls and to engender interest and enthusiasm. Athletic and enrichment activities are carefully chosen to complement academic offerings as well as to develop physical health and fitness and to promote teamwork. For more information on Girls Inc. visit girlsinc.org.
All proceeds from Lunch for the Girls support the educational, cultural, and recreational opportunities for girls ages 5 to 18 at Girls Incorporated of Omaha, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization dedicated to inspiring all girls to be “Strong, Smart and Bold.” Reservations for Lunch for the Girls are now available for $100 per person or $200 per person for patron reservations. Reservations can be made online through https://2022lftg.eventbrite.com, or visiting https://girlsincomaha.org/events/lunch-for-the-girls/ , downloading a reservation form, and submitting it by email to sdunning@girlsincomaha.org.
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