Do you know a Cool Girl? Do you know a girl (or woman) who:
Has a positive impact on the world or her community?
Stays positive when things get crazy or overwhelming?
Takes risks and travels her own path?
Always let’s her unique personality shine?
Finds a need and goes out of her way to meet it?
If so, you might know a Cool Girl! Sock It to Me celebrates women and girls of all kinds who are making a difference and being their awesome selves while doing it. Please fill out our form below to let us know the story of the Cool Girl in your life for a chance for them to be featured on our website and win (what else?) socks!
A teacher at my daughter’s school suggested we nominate Jordyn as a “cool girl”. Jordyn Bryant, age 14, decided to raise money for a clean water system overseas. She investigated organizations and decided to partner with former Liberian refugee, Eric Wowoh, and Change Agent Network. Jordyn then started a group at her school called World Changers and to date they have raised $3000 of the $10000 goal through bracelet sales, t-shirt sales, and a community event. She arranged for Eric Wowoh to travel from Texas to Indiana to speak to the students at her school about his experiences as a refugee and the importance of education and clean water around the world. Although an introvert, she has demonstrated boldness and courage as she speaks to student groups, church groups, and business owners about her project. She continues to work toward achieving her goal despite living in a community that thinks locally rather than globally. She is planning to travel to the site of the water system in Lofa County, Liberia after she achieves her $10,000 goal (hopefully by Spring, 2016). She has also expressed a desire to transition World Changers into a non-profit that continues to raise funds for needs of people overseas. You can find out more information about her project on Instagram or her FB page – World Changers: Clean Water.
i know a cool girl and her name is makenzie harris she is my older sister and i really look up to her she teaches me lots of things really benifit me in my life. i think she would be a perfect cool girl role model because she is a awesome sister
Hello.
I’d love to nominate the Cool Girl who bought me my superhero Sock It To Me Socks, my personal hero, Allie Pawlukojc, who makes costumes from burlesque to ballet, her skills highly praised amongst the industry, rising to the ranks with grace & charm in just a year, she’s also a prized corset maker & designer of lingerie, working on designs the range from neon to metal.
She is OdetteCoquette, a model & burlesque performer that constantly wins over any audience with her smile & skill, costumed as Lady Liberty, Swan Courtesan, a Bumblebee, or Sleepy Starlet, she always wows.
My pal; Rockstar Heather Kluppell.
Rocks the high heels when not driving heavy machinery to help hubby.
@@@!!!*Total Rockstar*[email protected]@@
I would like to Nominate Julie Wagne founder of Petel http://www.peteldesign.com/pages/about-us
she and her husband work full time and are parents to two wonderful girls. They established Petel to support Ibrahima’s village (Fulani tribe) tradition and craft of weaving. They recently organized a Kickstarter fundraiser and are now establishing two women’s cooperative in Mauritania this summer.
Thank you
Michelle Downes
Autumn Webb is a supreme Cool Girl!! She works hard everyday to focus on her many goals to of becoming a MMA fighter, vocalist, and also serving the mission opportunities at her church. She is always focusing on opportunities to assist people within her community. She thrives at packing food for third world countries. She also rallies together other teenagers to promote making positive life choices and being a friend to all not just to some! She is amazing.
Sabra Davis is a young women who has proven over and over again she is your idea of a ‘cool girl’. She is a self-published author of two books and is a role model for many young kids. She also is one of the strongest women I know because her family is falling on hard times, father had a stroke and is in a nursing home, mother isn’t well do to anxiety because of this, and they’re both running a home where half the income has disappeared do to her father’s stroke. Through all this she still manages to keep her head up and go see her father as much as she can which is usually a couple times a week, but now their truck is even broke down.
Anyway, I nominate her for her strength, perseverance, intelligence, and heart.
Cassandra Downey is a perfect candidate for your Cool Girl profiles. My 24 yr old daughter is a hard working University of Guelph Masters student studying plants with the potential of being used as bio-fuel. She earned a pharmacy technician position after receiving her Baccalaureate in Science Honours Program due too her loyalty and hard work at Shopper’s Drug Mart. A loving, trusted, and compassionate daughter and friend, always first to help and last to leave. A trained Muay Thai fighter, the girl the boys ask to drive the U-haul because they can’t handle the ‘big rig’. Her strong faith in God and caring heart is all she needs to stand up for those that can’t stand for themselves. Cool girl all the way!
Emily of Mama Said (http://www.emilywrites.co.nz/) is a way cool woman. Not only does she support her family by working hard, but she’s set up an enormously supportive online community through her parenting blog Mama Said AND established a charity that provides free ballet lessons for kids in her region (http://balletisforeveryone.co.nz/) all while raising a new baby and a toddler. I am proud to be able to call her my friend :)
The coolest girl I know if my wife Liz. More than anyone else I’ve known, she has made her own path through life. She has overcome adversity, put herself through medical school and now helps the community through addiction therapy. She always manages to keep a level head when everything around her becomes shaky. She is my rock, my super supportive Lizzie.
Sydney is probably the coolest person I know, let alone girl. Somewhere cross-between a best friend and a life coach is where you’d find Sydney. I may have only known her for a few weeks, but already I’ve been taught more than I’ve learned years over! I look forward to many more lessons and memories to come, you’re awesome Sydney!
I’d like to nominate LA Finfinger! She recently moved to our little big city of Baltimore and has shaken things up to give everyone a new dose of energy and inspiration. By founding and leading Free Baltimore Yoga, LA strives to give access more people a door into the yoga world. Personally, I was intimidated by yoga for a long time and to see the way she provides relatable opportunities for people is inspiring! She’s always full of energy and excitement – and has been a brilliant female addition to our ever-growing pool of rockstars in Charm City!
The coolest girl I know is Angie Torres
I would like to nominate my friend Clancy. We met my second year of teaching and clicked right away. She is an aspiring film documentarian with high standards and even high goals. She has taught filmography while working as a videographer for a museum all while working on her own projects like “Geo Talks with Clancy” (a youtube channel dedicated to clear and non-biased information about what is happening in our environment today and how we can impact it both positively and negatively) and running her very own video editing business (clancycalkins.com). With all of that on her plate she has still managed to find time to help me stay passion hungry in my own life. I have rarely met someone so motivated but also willing to slow down to help a friend or as for help herself. She is one of the coolest girls I know.
I would like to nominate my daughter, Xochi. She is mature beyond her years demonstrating a depth of concern for the well-being of others. She has great skills as an artist and a writer and my writing will not do her justice. Her beauty radiates from inside and she is able to connect with others. The reason I think she is such a cool girl is she has passion for advocating for the well-being of people. She demonstrates her advocacy through her behavior on a daily basis. If she identifies a person in pain, she thinks about how she can reach out. She models acceptance and awareness. She is working to teach others about feminism to demonstrate that feminism is good for both men and women. I instantly felt my life fill at her birth and now that she is moving towards adulthood, I see that she will influence many people in a positive way. She is a very cool girl.
I would like to nominate Samantha Germain of Orillia, Ontario. Samantha is a 19 year old young woman. She is a second year student (Political Science) at the University of Ottawa, where she is on the Dean’s List. Throughout high school she maintained a 90+ average. She is a cool girl for many reasons, but primarily it is her attitude – she is a high energy, over-achiever who impresses all she meets. She had a year in Turkey as a Rotary International Exchange Student. A proficient English and French-speaking Canadian, in Turkey Samantha learned to speak Turkish, German and Arabic as well as learning the ethnic Turkish dancing. She maintained a blog and informed her friends and family in Canada of the exchange experience. Samantha is also a gorgeous model, with Power Model Management in Ottawa. She has been a Model Director in Windsor with the Wearable Art Show at SHO-Art, Spirit and Performance and in Orillia with SOMNIATIS I and II Wearable Art Show in support of the Orillia Museum of Art and History. She was selected by her school Board to have a short story published. Samantha is a strong swimmer who has almost completed her Lifeguard qualifications. There are so many wonderful things to say about this very creative and joyful individual. BTW – she is a fantastic sock model with high heels and quirky appeal!
Melanie Dickens is one inspirational young woman. She was lives and thrives with several chronic medical conditions, including Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy. After I was diagnosed Melanie was there for me, and I’m sure many others in my same situation, she walked me through things and encouraged me to remain positive. Melanie is the founder of Crazy Sock Day for Melanie: January 24th Fight Invisible, and event that to me represents color and positive celebration on a subject that is often tinted in dark color.
Melanie is such a light within the invisible illness and pain community and she has inspired and positively impacted so many people, young an old. Melanie is a one and a million kind of girl and her attitude and outlook on life has made a lasting impact on the world. I can’t think of a cooler girl with a bigger love for others, and socks!
I nominate my Crazy Sock Girl, Melanie Dickens, 16. Melanie has lived with chronic pain and illness since she 10 and her colorful socks have been a big part of the journey. From the early days of torturous physical therapy and wearing long socks that hurt badly, to the days wear these socks became her protection from painful air in her skin, and ultimately to today, where Crazy Sock Day is celebrated as an awareness day for Invisible Illnesses that too often cause chronic pain. Crazy Sock Day was first created to celebrate Melanie’s year-long fight to stand up to Complex Regional Pain Syndrome with a positive attitude and spunky style. Before long, Crazy Sock Day was far more than simple fun, with people wearing and posting pictures of their colorful socks in efforts to share stories of chronic pain and invisible illness. Its become a movement and it was started by one 10 year old girl and her desire to help people understand that people with pain can continue living. Its all about adapting, improvising, and overcoming!
Melanie rocks her colorful socks daily. Her favorites for comfort and style are Sock it To Me. Lately it’s the gray Dandelions as she sees wishes, where some only see weeds. Her Caution tape socks have been worn for numerous surgeries with true meaning of backing of her painful limb. Today, Ice cream cone socks were added to her collection of hundreds of socks.
“Meet” Melanie by liking Crazy Sock Day for Melanie on facebook and join us in wearing Crazy Socks against Invisible Illness and Chronic Pain in January 24th!
http://invisibleproject.org/index.php
I’d like to nominate Sharon Lin as a cool girl! She runs the New York State Technology Student Association and StuyHacks, and is even the program organizer for the NCWIT AspireIT camp BitxBit. She’s published a book (Hidden), filed a patent, and has given talks around the country. Furthermore, she’s an incredible youth activist and writer. She’s been published in The Huffington Post, AFA, Mogul, Medium, and even runs several blogs of her own, where she posts about her travels, photography, Buddhism, programming, and activism. She’s also on the Executive Board of the National Teen Council and ProjectCSGIRLS, and is a huge advocate for computer science and women in STEM. She’s won a number of awards from science competitions including MIT THINK, Google Science Fair, NYCSEF, Future City Engineers, Exploravision, Humans in Space, and the Global STEM Alliance. She’s currently a rising senior at Stuyvesant High School, and has taken courses at Columbia University and New York University. Of course, she’s also a genius with computers, incredibly sweet, and so accepting of others!
I would like to nominate my mother, Stacey Schreiber, the coolest girl I know. Even though she hasn’t won many awards, she is always willing to help me or a friend out. She works as a second grade teacher with over twenty kids, who have the most amazing and intelligent teacher possible. She always stays calm in the most stressful situations possible. She takes me to my classes when needed. I love her so much!
I’d nominate my sister, Sara, whose taught me a lot about persistence and perseverance. She spends a lot of her time organizing hackathons and other technology events in our community, but as an organizer and not a prize winner, she never really gets the recognition she deserves. On the weekends, she teaches small workshops to elementary school students on how to code and program electronics. Even though there are a lot of initiatives that are more far-reaching, I think that she’s one of the hardest workers out there and has impacted our community the most :)
I nominate Katy Preston, the dreamer and doer behind The Clackamas Bookshelf. She always sees the glass as half-full, and ignores the naysayers. She created The Clackamas Bookshelf to give free books to low-income kids in our community. In just over 2 years, she’s been the driving force behind over 23,000 books finding their way into the homes of needy kids. Her enthusiasm for making sure ALL children have the tools they need to succeed is contagious!
I would like nominate my wife Nicole Woodruff a Library Tech at St Helens Library Not only does she work full time there but finds the time to work on her college degree. She is a awesome mother of two kids,she makes sure they do well in school also. She is the greatest women I know . the patrons that come in to the Library love her she always has book recommendations for them and they most of the time books she has read. I am very proud of her and the jobs she does everywhere. I think being a full time mom , wife, working 40 plus hours a week and a student with a 4.0 GPA makes her a Cool Girl.
M girlfriend Teresa loves socks…and not just any socks…your brand of socks among others…she gravitates towards the zany and flashy types you produce and loves to wear them…she works for a local Harley-Davidson dealership in Vancouver, Canada and is all about riding a motorcycle and empowering other women to do the same…she is full of so much love and is always being her best in life to not only help others feel good about themselves but also about being there for people when it matters….always being one to make things fair and to do what it takes to raise the bar for others to follow as leading by example is what she does…seeing her talk about riding to other women really shows me the passion she has to ride and for others to as well…her heart is so full of love and it spills out into everyone that knows her and makes people feel good about themselves…i’m a lucky man to be with her and to see all of this first hand is like a gift to me that I can open every day…she really is a “Cool Girl” and i’d like to nominate her as one
Sincerely,
Sam Singh
I nominate Ashley McCoy- Wilson. She is a war veteran from the Army. She is raising 4 kids as a single parent. Her youngest, Farrah, was diagnosed with End stage Kidney Disease before she was 2. Since no match was found for her daughter’s needed kidney transplant, Ashley found a solution. She would donate her own kidney to a person in need.. And in return they would find a kidney for Farrah. Nov. 2 2016 a healthy kidney was placed in that now vibrant 3 year old. Nov. 29 2016. as promised, Ashley donated her kidney to a person in need in CO. I can’t think of a bigger hero then my friend Ashley. :) Have a great day!!
My daughter Jesse is a cool girl! She races BMX, rides freestyle BMX, races dirrbikes and is generally just a great kid. She loves dogs and anything with two wheels! Jesse is also one of the kindest hearts you will ever meet. She goes out of her way for anything and anyone. She is one of the coolest girls I know!
I am nominating Sunny Dyck, The reason behind the nomination is because of everything she does for other people. 2016 was a busy year for her, she is the President of her Adult Roller Derby Team, which she help start in her small town. She dedicates her time to her community in so many ways. She works hard with the local Cadet Corps, the Kidney Foundation, and the M.S society. She herself is never seen without a smile, without the question of “what can I do to help you?”. She gives so much of herself for others all the time. She is a mom of 3, loving wife, business owner and can rock the socks off anyone when it comes to a dance off. This year she has taken on a brand new role and started a first of its kind Junior Roller Derby Team, she is providing the program free…yes FREE to local youth. This is such an amazing way to break barriers, encourage health and full support for anyone in sports. Sunny never asks for anything in return, she gives and gives and does amazing things with everything she gets involved in. I nominate her so she may have lil something flashy for herself. I know she loves sock it to me socks and would be so surprised to be given something back.
Liz Crompton is the coolest girl in the Universe. She is 68 years old and works at Emmanuel Hospital in ultrasound. She deals with people and children who are having the worst days of their lives and always has a true word and compassion to spare. I applaud her honesty because it saved my life.
I met Liz the day I got sober. She took me out for coffee after I met with people with a common solution at the last house on the block. She bent over backwards spending time with me, giving me good orderly direction and she taught me how to help others.
Liz was recently diagnosed with Pulmonary Fibrosis (PF), a chronic, progressive & fatal lung conditon. Her health is deteriorating rapidly.
And do you know what she did the day she found out?
She volunteered. She suited up and showed up for life. She took hours of her limited time & met with struggling alcoholics to give them hope – in the midst of her own storm. She didn’t complain. She didn’t lament her misfortune. She is taking the time God has given her and is teaching kindness to strangers who have nothing to offer her.
The next day she got out of bed and did it again, because that is who she is.
And that is the most badass thing in the whole history of ever.
Fernanda Yepez-Lopez is a definite cool girl! She has been recycling water bottles, making them into pencil cases, filling them with brand new pencils and giving them to schools in our community who have high poverty rates. She has made a real difference!
My sister is a “cool girl”! Besides being a great role model as an aunt, wife sister and daughter, she has a positive impact on her community, along with the animals and people she mentors and helps. She is ambitious as referenced by her athletic abilities; humbly accepting awards and pushing herself to bike across countries in Asia or traveling to Guatemala to help teach planting techniques for instance. There are no boundaries for this witty and curious “cool girl”. Her current role as a salesperson and former as a teacher in math and science also yield above average efforts and results. I’m proud of her!
Semilla Nueva
Board of Directors (January, 2017- present)
SN Helps rural Guatemalan farmers find a path to better nutrition, lasting food security, and prosperity through more nutritious seeds.
Idaho Business Review’s Women of the Year Award Nomination (2017)
Rotary International, District 5400, Boise Metro Rotary Club (2007 – present)
Two-time Service Above Self winner, Rotary’s highest honor (2009 and 2013)
President (2011); board member (2007-2012)
Guest Speaker Coordinator (2009 – present)
Therapy dog work (2003-2010), St. Mary’s Columbia Hospital; Boise Veteran’s Home
With Cowboy and Turk (furry heroes)
Big Brothers / Big Sisters
Big Sister mentor (2002-present)
Board of Directors (2015-present)
Big Sister of the Year award for Southwest Idaho (2010)
Idaho Humane Society
Board of Directors (2011- 2015); President of Board (2015)
Philanthropy and Capital Campaign committees (2011 – 2015)
Boise State Public Radio
Community Advisory Board Member (2009 – 2014); President of CAB (2014)
Outreach / Public Relations Committee (2010 – 2014)
Idaho Women’s Charitable Foundation (2010 – present)
Chair of Environmental Grants Committee (2011 – 2014)
Endurance and Competitive Athlete
Lactic Acid Cycling Club Member (2007 – present)
United States Master’s Swim Team Member, YMCA (1995 – present)
Leadville Mountain Bike Race Finisher (2015)
Colorado Double Triple Bypass Finisher (2013)
Summited Mt Kilimanjaro (2008)
Ironman Triathlon Competitor/Finisher (2002)
UltraMax Iron Distance Triathlon Finisher (2002)
Dear Sock It to Me gang,
I would like to nominate a COOL GIRL friend of mine. Her name is Kara Dolce. In December 2008, she was a bubbly 26 years old living in NY, focused on climbing the corporate ladder in an ad agency, she also enjoying her family, having fun with friends… not unlike many other girls her age. She became different when she found out she had breast cancer.
A couple weeks after starting dating her future husband, this news came as a bombshell, bursting the bubble you ‘re in, when you ‘re 26 and think nothing can stop you if you put you give it all you have. She bravely decided to get a double mastectomy, and went to battle for over 2 years, going through the pain, the fear, the insecurity and the whole ordeal of chemotherapy and later radiation treatments.
What helped her stay strong and positive was being surrounded with people who love her for sure, but also the strength she pulled from a pair of pink boxing gloves a friend gave her. She brought these with her at treatments as a symbol of what she was trying to do (and did): fight and kick the “S***T out of it”. She passed the gloves on to another friend, who passed them on to another, etc…
Fast forward 8 years…Kara is now healthy and enjoys her life in Portland. What makes her a cool girl, is the fact that, she decided to help other women rock their bold heads and keep a positive attitude when it would be so easy, some days to crawl under a rock and stay there. She created the non-profit: Fighting Pretty, in 2014. She dedicates all her personal time developing the care package service, sending “pretty packages” to women who are going through that same devastating treatment. The box includes things like scarves, beauty products, encouraging words, and of course: The small pink boxing gloves. She sources donations for the box content, spreads the word, looks for partners, transforms her living room a micro-warehouse, finds volunteers… She has sent close to 3000 in and outside the country.
The boxes are not fixing the problem that is cancer, but from the feedback she gets from the happy recipients and her own experience, it’s like a large cherry on top of the cake. When the cake tastes so bitter, that cherry MATTERS A LOT. Kara is A COOL GIRL!
I am writing to nominate Marie-Claire Leman as about the coolest “girl” I know. Marie-Claire is from Quebec (Canada) and now lives in our town of Tallahassee Florida with her husband and three kids. Marie-Claire is super-cool for the following reasons (at least):
1. Her family of 5 people is car-free in a part of the US (i.e. not Portland) where this is unheard of. They bike everywhere, with the occasional addition of buses. She is an inspiration to all of us!
2. She is a leader in our local bike community, as one of the major organizers of the Joyride Bike Collective. Joyride promotes family cycling and commuting in Tallahassee. Marie-Claire has organized Kidical Mass rides, including holiday rides with bikes all lit up. She makes sure that these rides include local kids and families who normally wouldn’t bike and can’t afford bikes by working with Bike House Tallahassee to get them bikes and teaching them to ride. She also initiated a walking and biking “bus” to the neighborhood school where the adults go around and collect kids along a regular route so they can get to school by bike and by foot.
3. She is a leader in our local public school. The neighborhood school struggles with not enough funding and a lot of kids who need extra help or come from difficult home situations. Marie-Claire is constantly working at the school, including having founded an afterschool garden club, having gotten recess reinstated (after the administration got rid of it), helping establish a routine where teachers screen kids as they get off the bus so those who arrive at school upset or unfed get immediate attention, and organizing an annual 5K run to generate funds for the school (for which Marie-Claire makes 100s of home-made bagels, I kid you not).
4. She is a huge force for good in our neighborhood more generally, helping to run the neighborhood newsletter, the annual neighborhood festival (complete with giant puppet show, neighborhood bands, etc), participating in the monthly potluck in the park etc. etc. etc.
5. She is just generally super energetic, enthusiastic, and when she sees something wrong or unfair she works to fix it. If we were all this cool the world would be a better place.
Amanda Reese is a cool girl. she just joined the national guard this summer and is leaving in june. We will all really miss her but are so proud of her for all the great changes she has done in her life
I would like to nominate my best friend Brook Rudolph. To the rest of the world she’s just another girl but in my world she is the definition genuinely amazing. I’ve had the pleasure of knowing Brook for over ten years now and it has been an incredible honor to travel on this life adventure with her by my side. Brook has always been a goal getter. She started her own photography company at a very early age and since then has been making the world a more beautiful place one picture at a time. Working hard her whole life to reach her goals she never lost sight of what was most important to her, friends and family. She truly puts others before herself because in her heart what makes her the happiest is to see the ones she loves the most happy. Brook was there for me through the best of times and through worst of times and every little step along the way. I can honestly say she is the bestest friend anyone could ever dream to have. My only hope is one day I can be as good as a friend to her as she has been to me. So that’s why I would proudly like to nominate Brook Rudolph as a cool girl because being a true best friend is the coolest thing!
i want to nominatye my sister named matthew who is also a boy he is transgender but not really he goes as a boy but also a girl and i think he deserves this award becuase he is so brave and wears girls underwear
I would like to nominate my best friend Kristi as a “Cool Girl”. She is always so positive and can make anyone laugh. She is an amazing mom of 2 kids and she is a nurse in pediatric oncology with our hospital. She is amazing with kids, especially the ones that are going through such a difficult time. She is always there to lift your spirits!! She herself has a childlike spirit and gets to wear fun scrubs to work since she is with kids. Fun socks would just complete her work outfit!! I wish more people were as happy and positive as Kristi!!!
I would like to nominate our friends, Shelby Saville & Suz Mushaney are definitely COOL GIRLs! Their approach to life, friends & family continue to inspire cool girls across multiple generations. Next week Shelby is going to become a superhero (at least that is how I interpret neurosurgery) and Suz her best friend from university will be there to support her & her family. Our hearts & thoughts are with them. Now I need to buy them some fun socks to wear!
I would like to nominate my inner self. I push myself everyday to exceed my previous day challenges. I’m a mother of 3 and I train MMA and boxing. Had a badly torn ACL and was told of my challenges that would lie ahead. I have influenced so many with my struggles and gains as they did with me. I’m up for my first fight in a few months and I’m extremely ecstatic to see my tiny influence oh so happy. I continue to grow and I will always be humble. I want to be the change you wish to see.
I would like to nominate the love of my life, Jana. Jana is such a brave and loyal friend. She has been through a lot of challenges in her life but has always chosen to be a positive person. She works at a local Food Bank, teaches swimming and has worked for years with young people as a swimming coach and has always encouraged the children and youth that she coached to be their best no matter what their challenges have been. On top of this she is an awesome homeschooling mom who owns a small farm on a little island. Her love for her family, community, animals and the environment is amazing. She’s always willing to listen when people need to talk and to pitch in when someone needs help with something. A true citizen of the global community. Oh and did I also mention that she is an amazing and creative artist in a variety of media. She inspires so many people!
I am writing to nominate Gonk Droid as about the coolest “girl” I know. Gonk is from Star Wars (Galaxy) and now lives in our town of Tallahassee Florida with his husband and three kids. Gonk Droid is super-cool for the following reasons (at least):
1. Gonk’s family of 5 people is car-free in a part of the US (i.e. not Portland) where this is unheard of. They bike everywhere, with the occasional addition of buses. She is an inspiration to all of us!
2. Gonk is a leader in our local bike community, as one of the major organizers of the Joyride Bike Collective. Joyride promotes family cycling and commuting in Tallahassee. Gonk has organized Kidical Mass rides, including holiday rides with bikes all lit up. Gonk makes sure that these rides include local kids and families who normally wouldn’t bike and can’t afford bikes by working with Bike House Tallahassee to get them bikes and teaching them to ride. Gonk also initiated a walking and biking “bus” to the neighborhood school where the adults go around and collect kids along a regular route so they can get to school by bike and by foot.
3. Gonk is a leader in our local public school. The neighborhood school struggles with not enough funding and a lot of kids who need extra help or come from difficult home situations. Gonk Droid is constantly working at the school, including having founded an afterschool garden club, having gotten recess reinstated (after the administration got rid of it), helping establish a routine where teachers screen kids as they get off the bus so those who arrive at school upset or unfed get immediate attention, and organizing an annual 5K run to generate funds for the school (for which Gonk makes 100s of home-made bagels, I kid you not).
4. Gonk is a huge force for good in our neighborhood more generally, helping to run the neighborhood newsletter, the annual neighborhood festival (complete with giant puppet show, neighborhood bands, etc), participating in the monthly potluck in the park etc. etc. etc.
5. Gonk is just generally super energetic, enthusiastic, and when Gonk sees something wrong or unfair Gonk works to fix it. If we were all this cool the world would be a better place.
A true COOL girl is someone that is friendly, positive, inspiring and most of all fun! Therefor I would like to nominate my fellow rollergirls The MissMeow Rollergirls!!! Making friends where ever they go as they prove that rollerskating is for EVERYONE not just the elite. Spreading the word on exercise, positive lifestyle & fun…and making a bunch of new friends along the way!!! Their motto #teammeow is one of friendship, laughter & positivity. I think these ladies deserve to be called ‘cool girls’ as they have truly changed my life for the better… And trust me they love their Socks as much as they love their Skates. Xx
Aarin Gates (IG: @airingates) is an incredible female aggressive inline skater. She does stunts and has all the style! Aarin skates in short shorts and knee high socks, it’s her thing… It would be AMAZING to see AG (Aarin Gates) shredding in ‘Sock it to me’ socks! She’s the most kind human, teaches kids to skate, worked at Woodward West camp in California, she’s never said a swear word and is the 100% the coolest human I’ve ever met!
I would like to nominate a girl who is not only cool, but one of my most favorite people ever!
I met Amanda Gold in our sophomore year of high school together and for 20 years now, she has been someone I’ve always been enamored with.
Back then, she introduced me to some of my favorite punk music and was a kindred soul who mirrored and validated my feelings of rebellion and always supported my ambitions and dreams.
The years went by and we were in and out of touch, living in different cities and going through the trials and tribulations of life. Somehow through it all, we remain best friends to this day and talk pretty regularly.
She is a true renaissance woman. A person who has so many talents in which she is equally amazing at including:
drawing and painting, working as an accomplished tattoo artist, writing and recording songs, singing, playing the guitar and banjo, and most recently starting her own amazing creative business: partywolfparty.com.
Perhaps the most wonderful thing about Amanda is that she has had some very difficult things that she’s had to overcome including addictions, family issues, and things that so many of us have been through and she has spoken about them candidly in an attempt to help and inspire others including: her blog Bestilldigdeep.wordpress.com and by participating and speaking in “This is my brave” the show. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sXIH5LN3OU.
Not to mention working for The Colorado Coalition for the homeless, an organization that helps sufferring people find housing and assists them with whatever obstacles they are having.
She just enrolled in classes at the Naropa Institute in Boulder Colorado and is learning how to combine two of her passions: art and helping people into a future for herself. I wish her the best of luck, but she doesn’t need it because she’s a real-life Superhero!
Incidentally, I am a merchandise buyer for a store and we sell Sock it to Me socks!
Now, once again living in two different cities, we sometimes send packages for birthdays and holidays and she’s always thrilled when she opens them up and finds a pair of Sock it to me!
I want to nominate. BROOK HURST STEPHENS
She lives up on the Key Pennisula, (Longbranch, Wa). She lost her son last year. She bought a rundown FARAWAY FARM. All the building had to be worked on. Flower beds, pastures, sea wall, etc. she is starting a business of flowers. She is also a Master Preserver. She has given classes. Writes for the local paper. She does everything. I so look up to her. I’ve known here since she was little. She is ONE COOL GIRL. You can find Brook on FaceBook. Historic Faraway.
I would love to nominate my Granddaughter Daryion Parker. She lives in North Powder, Oregon, which is in Eastern Oregon. She is 17 years old and a senior at Powder Valley School. As a senior this year she had to do a job shadow at a place of her choice. She picked Baylans Manufacture in Baker City, Oregon. She chose the welding department and picked up a welder for the very first time in her life. They gave her pipe to weld together, which is what they use to build cattle gates, and she did such a great job that they contacted her Dad , who also works in shipping for them, and showed him pictures of her welds and wanted to get his permission to hire her. They offered her the job and gave her welding tests which she passed with flying colors. She now works for them on Friday night and Saturday mornings. She is a welding prodigy. After she graduates this June she plans to work for about a year and then enlist in the Air Force and become a Security Policeman. There is nothing around that she wouldn’t try to do. She and her mother are going to skydive on her 18th birthday this June. She is an awesome young lady and loves to save money and is working to buy herself a new Jeep Wrangler. She really deserves this award. Hope you think so to.
My daughter Emily is the ultimate “cool girl”. Emily has been competing in the male dominated sport of wrestling for eight years. Emily is 13 and is currently wrestling for Hood River Middle School and All Phase Wrestling Club in West Linn. Emily goes to two hours of school practice and then we drive an hour to advanced All Phase club practice for two more hours. Emily is always on her school honor roll and takes advanced courses, she does her homework in the car between practice. Emily currently holds 4 state champion titles and will be competing for her 5th this Saturday. She wrestles mostly boys and out of 24 matches last year she won 22. The year before that she won 19 out of 20 matches. It has not been easy for her over the last eight years competing in a male dominated sport with all male coaching. She has been the victim of gender discrimination since she stepped on the wrestling mat at 6 years old. She has overcome harassment, and bullying from team mates, coaches and a lot of people who just don’t like the idea of girls wrestling boys. Emily is also involved with her church youth group, she volunteers to teach sailing during the summer and is active with mountain biking, soccer and track. Helen Maroulis, Olympic Gold Medalist in 2016, continues to be a role model for Emily who also aspires to stand on the Olympic podium one day. Emily is absolutely obsessed with her socks, like most wrestlers, she tucks her pants into her socks! Emily is a very cool girl!