Miami Herald - December 16, 2004
Laura Morales, llmorales@herald.com

Brimming with confidence, 13-year-old Darniqua Bogan sashayed toward her audience on the lawn of the West Grove's Gibson House, smiling and swinging her hips while the wind tried to steal her hat.

"It's the fire in my eyes, the flash of my teeth, the swing of my waist, the joy in my feet. I'm a woman, phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, that's me," she said, reciting part of a Maya Angelou poem. The other members of the Coconut Grove Girls Group recited their own lines with equal zest.

The girls performed Friday at a holiday party in honor of Lennar Financial Services, which this year chose the Girls Group, part of the Thelma Gibson Health Initiative, for their "Random Acts of Caring" program.

They gave the girls career seminars, field trips to meet people such as Olympic runner Lauren Williams, and weekly computer classes.

Eight of the group members recently took a computer test. All passed. For that achievement, and for working hard and keeping up attendance, Lennar gave them laptops.

The group was formed two years ago for at-risk girls whose caregivers are the initiative's clients.

"It began with us helping them with their homework and such," President Thelma Gibson said. "With the help of the county's Women's Fund, we decided to give the girls the right direction in life."

The Health Initiative provides services such as free HIV testing, mental health and drug-abuse counseling, 12-step meetings and case management for those in the community who can't afford to pay for help.

Darniqua has been in the Girls Group since it started.

"We're learning about the things we should and shouldn't be doing," she said. "I felt great when I passed the computer test. I didn't know anything about computers before. I put all my hope into it, and I only got one question wrong."

"It's been a great experience," said Ashley Henley, 14, playfully jostling her group mates. "My favorite thing was meetingLauren Williams. She's my role model."

Lennar Financial CEO David McCain gave the girls their own IBM laptops as rewards for good attendance and hard work in the courses.

"All the girls passed their computer tests," he told the audience. "Those tests are not easy. They deserve congratulations."

Lennar also rebuilt the kitchens in the two Gibson houses in the Grove and held a drive that produced dozens of bags of clothes for the poor and homeless.

"Every day we have folks come here who have nowhere else to go," said Merline Barton, the initiative's executive director. "We let them take showers and get a free meal and some clean clothes."

"There's no such thing as a slow day around this place," Gibson said, opening her arms as if to embrace the house. "There are always people, young and old, in desperate need of our help."

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