The 55-year-old Girl Scout leader was scheduled to run in this year's Boston Marathon; after it was postponed due to the pandemic, Tandy Wilson decided to use her training to lift the spirits of the girls in her troop by visiting each one at home.

Tandy Wilson had been training for years to qualify for the 2020 Boston Marathon — so after the coronavirus led to the historic marathon's first postponement in 124 years, the long-time Girl Scout leader decided to put all of her marathon preparation to good use by lifting the spirits of the girls in her troop! The 55-year-old troop leader laid out a 46-mile route across the San Fernando Valley in California — 20 miles longer than a marathon — that allowed her to run past the homes of all 52 of her Girl Scouts over 11 hours. Calling it "Tandy's Purple Unicorn Run" after the troop's official color and the Boston Marathon's mascot, Wilson stopped at each girl's house to chat while observing social distancing, take safe-distance selfies, and leave them each a Purple Unicorn Sticker celebrating the troop and her run. "I’m so excited just to see all of them," she said before setting off on the 46-mile run. "Seeing them. That’s what’s going to keep me going." Continue reading → Continue reading

These Mighty Girls have designed a cheap ventilator out of car parts to help with the pandemic fight in a country with only 12 working ventilators in its main coronavirus hospitals.

The Afghan girls’ robotics team has joined the fight against coronavirus by designing an inexpensive ventilator out of automobile parts! The team members from Herat created the prototype after the governor of the Afghan province sent out a public plea for ventilators. The region is expecting an explosion in coronavirus cases due to a huge surge in Afghan migrant workers returning to the country from neighboring Iran, one of the disease's global hotspots. The impoverished nation is ill-prepared for any significant outbreak; as of April 2, the country's two hospitals designated for coronavirus cases had only 12 working ventilators between them. In response to this desperate need, the Afghan Dreamers robotics team developed a ventilator prototype which costs under $300 to make from parts that can be easily sourced in the country. "The only thing that we all want to do is help our people and our community," says tech entrepreneur Roya Mahboob, who founded the Afghan Dreamers program. "I work with the girls, but mostly to coordinate. They are the real heroes." Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl's top picks of e-books about extraordinary women that are available for under $5!

While staying at home to avoid the spread of the coronavirus, many adults are taking advantage of the extra time to catch up on their reading! But with many libraries and bookstores closed, it's not necessarily easy to get new titles to add to your "to read" pile. E-books are the perfect solution: they are quick to receive, so within minutes, you can be enjoying your next read! Continue reading → Continue reading

"It feels like we've accidentally created a community of young people who just really wanted to help right now."

It all started with a Facebook post. "Is there a way for an able-bodied 25-year-old to volunteer to help deliver groceries/supplies to elderly tenants around the city? Does anyone know of something like this?" Simone Policano, an actor and producer who lives in New York City, wrote on March 12 as the number of coronavirus cases were starting to rise.  When she couldn't find an organization already coordinating volunteers for at-home deliveries, Policano and her friend Liam Elkind created Invisible Hands, a "free, volunteer-based delivery service for those most impacted by and most at-risk for severe complications due to COVID-19." Only a few weeks later, over 10,000 predominantly young volunteers are now part of Policano's network, which covers the greater New York area and parts of New Jersey. "We completely did not expect this," Policano says. "In this time where we are stuck in our homes, it's amazing to see young people wanting to help." Continue reading → Continue reading

This empowering collection will keep even the most voracious readers busy for weeks to come!

As coronavirus shutdowns lengthen, avid readers are facing a challenge: they're running out of reading material! E-books offer an excellent solution: choose your title and it will be on your device in minutes, ready to settle in for a reading session. To help tween readers and their parents find more girl-empowering books to read during the weeks ahead, we've featured a selection of Mighty Girl middle-grade titles — all of which are available as an e-book for under $5. Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl's top picks of movies to stream for free celebrating mighty women!

Just because we're stuck at home, doesn't mean we can't celebrate women's history! In fact, the extra hours at home offer a perfect chance to check out an inspiring film or two about groundbreaking woman from history. To that end, in our new blog post, we've showcased nine acclaimed movies about mighty women, which are each available to stream for free on Amazon Prime. Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl's top tips for parents on keeping kids engaged at home while observing social distancing.

With schools closing, events cancelled, and many companies urging employees to work from home to prevent the spread of COVID-19, parents are facing an unexpected challenge. Since many of these closures overlap school March breaks, kids may not have homework to do — and even if they do, the lack of school and extracurricular activities will leave them with extra time on their hands. But that doesn't mean that parents can rely on their usual school holiday activities like playdates, playgrounds, and museum visits: as Dr. Asaf Bitton writes in Social Distancing: This Is Not A Snow Day, "even if you choose only one friend to have over, you are creating new links and possibilities for the type of transmission that all of our school/work/public event closures are trying to prevent.... We need to all do our part during these times, even if it means some discomfort for a while." Continue reading → Continue reading

"The ability to offer help is one of our greatest gifts," says Becky Hoeffler.

A Durham, North Carolina woman has stepped up to help elderly neighbors stay safe during the coronavirus threat by getting their groceries! Becky Hoeffler, a Duke University employee who's currently working from home due to the virus, was inspired to start her project when she called to check in on her grandfather. "He told me, 'I’m on my way to the grocery store' and I was just kind of concerned because he’s 91 and I thought, 'is there a reason you have to go to the grocery store?... So that’s what made me think, maybe I can go grocery shopping for others since I do live in a community that has several senior citizen neighbors." Since then, Hoeffler has helped several of her at-risk neighbors avoid crowded stores by getting their groceries on her lunch break. "I think utilizing people power is one of the best ways that we can combat the virus," she says. As Hoeffler told A Mighty Girl, "The ability to offer help is one of our greatest gifts." Continue reading → Continue reading

"'My Best Friend' is about the instant heart connection between two girls who meet for the first time."

There are few joys as simple and as profound as a child's first friendship! In the course of a few hours — without even necessarily learning one another's names — two young children can forge a close connection that is unique to early childhood. These instant and joyful friendships are powerful moments in a child's life; Publishers Weekly aptly describes them as the "giddy infatuation when a child first meets another and feels an instant bond." Continue reading → Continue reading

Two new books for tweens explore the little-discussed but widespread problem of sexual harassment in middle school.

The rise of the #MeToo movement in 2017 brought much-needed attention to the widespread problem of sexual harassment of adult women. There has been little discussion, however, about the harassment of tween and teen girls by their peers, and how the way we respond to that harassment shapes what girls and boys think is socially acceptable. With a nationwide study finding that 56% of girls in grades 7 to 12 report experiencing sexual harassment at school, authors have recently began to explore this important topic in their works for middle grade readers. And, whether read together at home or at a book club or in a classroom, such books provide an excellent opportunity for parents and educators to start timely and essential conversations about harassment and boundaries with tween girls and boys.  Continue reading → Continue reading