The Tampa Tribune
Published: August 16, 2010
TEMPLE TERRACE - Ask most anyone who's been through it and they'll tell you that being a teenager is no easy task, especially if you're a girl.
Imagine what it's like for girls who also must contend with physical disabilities.
Sickles High School student Kirby Drake, 17, of Carrollwood, has experienced the added challenge. She has scoliosis, a curvature of the spine, for which she is being treated at Shriners Hospital for Children-Tampa. That's also where she chose to be on Aug. 7 for the hospital's second annual Glam Jam, a day of pampering for female patients age 12 to 17.
The girls received makeovers, manicures and new hairstyles and were treated to lunch and a workshop on building self-confidence and dealing with peer pressure.
"Most of us feel different, but this event helps make us feel beautiful for who we are so that people don't take us as a mistake in life," Kirby said.
The event is modeled after the attitude adopted by a girl named Jessica, a paraplegic. While undergoing therapy during a long hospital stay, she insisted upon getting dressed, with the help of others, in her everyday clothes, curling her hair, polishing her nails and shaving her legs.
Based upon her belief that looking good on the outside makes you feel better on the inside, she founded GLAHM Camp, a days-long event meant to build self-esteem. The one-day Glam Jam evolved from that camp.
Joyce McKenzie
From TBO.com published on August 16, 2010
