Girls unveil mural and new technology center

Deirdre Newman

“Strong, smart and bold” is the mantra of Girls Inc., and all three

attributes were highly visible during a celebration Thursday evening.

One of the girls who embodied these traits was Angie Quigley, who

has more poise and self-confidence than most 10 year olds. Without a

moment of hesitation, Quigley greeted visitors Thursday and offered

them a tour.

“We are not embarrassed to show off our center and our girls

aren’t either,” Executive Director Lucy Santana said. “The girls have

prepared really hard [for tonight]. They’re the reasons we love

coming to work every day.”

The event marked the grand opening of the United Parcel Service

Tech Center and the unveiling of a mural in honor of Girls’ Rights

Week and the organization’s 50 years of celebrating girlhood.

The center -- which includes nine new Dell Pentium computers --

will enable the girls to get hands-on experience.

“Our hope is they become Web designers, newsletter designers and

photographers,” Santana said. “If they don’t practice, they won’t

fully understand.”

Girls Inc. serves 25 schools throughout Orange County with

programs covering subjects like economic literacy and health and

sexuality.

The organization was able to obtain the computers with a $25,000

grant from the UPS Foundation. Lance Ungerman, community relations

supervisor for UPS and a Girls Inc. board member, said he was

inspired to give something back to the community once he found out

about the agency while he was an intern for City Manager Allan

Roeder.

“It gives them an opportunity to use the technology that everyone

else is using, so when they get in the real world, it gives them a

head start, in an environment that’s comfortable and familiar to

them,” Ungerman said.

The girls will also be able to learn about the inner workings of

computers by taking apart the old computers and putting them back

together, Santana said.

A colorful mural depicting women in such varied careers as

firefighters, doctors, astronauts and athletes was also unveiled

Thursday. Twenty girls, including teens from the Eureka! Summer

Program and girls from the Science, Math and Relevant Technology

programs at the center helped decide what professions should be

illustrated and painted on the mural as part of a joint project with

Operation Clean Slate, a Costa Mesa-based organization for graffiti

prevention.