Written by: Rosalind Guy, Memphis Daily News

As a mother, wife and business person, Stacie Waddell more than has her hands full. But that doesn't keep her from wanting to help mold young women in the community, teaching them things that "hopefully they will be able to adopt and pass on to their family and their future children."

Waddell recently was appointed chairman of the board of Girls Inc. of Memphis. The group is a chapter of Girls Inc., a national nonprofit organization that provides programs for girls, particularly those in high-risk, under-served areas.

The position is one Waddell said she's very passionate about.

"I'm so truly blessed to have been given the responsibility," she said. "But I feel honored and it's very rewarding to know that if I touch just one life - and I know that this sounds clichéd - but to touch one life, we don't know what kind of ripple effect or domino effect that one life might have on thousands in the future."

Fellow board member Dee Griffin said she believes Waddell is the right person to lead the board.

"Stacie works diligently to make sure there are adequate funds to continue offering programs and assistance to local girls who are in need of mentors and guidance," Griffin said. "She strives to instill pride and self-love in lives that are often left devastated and broken due to their environments."

Staying busy

Waddell has been a Girls Inc. board member since 2003. She is owner of Memphis clothing store Blu Champagne. She also serves on the boards of a number of other nonprofit organizations in the city, including Ballet Memphis and The Alliance for Nonprofit Excellence.

Acknowledging that her plate is full, Waddell said she continues to be inspired to spend her time working with an organization like Girls Inc. The inner drive, she said, comes from just looking around at her own life and seeing how richly blessed she is. Plus, she benefited from the organization as a participant when she was a child.

Waddell said she has a tremendously supportive network in the form of her husband, David, and their two children, Easton, 5, and Saylor, 1.

"You know, these girls, some are completely loved and that's important," she said. "But to look around me and know what (my family has) and to know what they don't, just even more pushes me to give as much as I possibly can."

Values-oriented

Many of the girls attending Girls Inc.'s after-school programs come from single-parent homes or low-income housing. At Girls Inc., the young women receive teaching that focuses on six core values: careers and life planning, health and sexuality, leadership and community action, sports and adventure, self reliance and life skills, and culture and heritage.

The six values each chapter focuses on are determined by the demographics of the city in which it is located. Waddell said focusing on those core values will empower the girls and teach them to be self-sufficient and strong.

"We're teaching them very targeted, core competencies," she said. "And we hope that these core areas will improve and help them for their future. Education is key to anything in life, I believe. As long as you're educated and know what to expect in certain areas, then they are more likely to be successful."

Health and sexuality is one of the big issues the organization seeks to address with the girls, trying to reach them at a younger age to help steer them down the right path, Waddell said.

Work rewarded

The Memphis chapter has been one of the organization's top three nationwide for years because the girls are so competitive and serious about everything they do, Waddell said.

The girls create marketing teams at the different facilities and compete for national titles. Two years ago, the Memphis team won national recognition by the beauty products company Lancome.

The girls created what they called a purse pouch and were chosen from all the teams throughout the nation to travel to New York for a week.

"Lancome flew our team, our president, vice president and marketing director to New York, entertained them and spoke to them and exposed them to something they may not have been otherwise exposed to," Waddell said. "So it's really remarkable."

Besides introducing the girls to what may be extraordinary experiences, the Girls Inc. staff also works to have an impact on the girls' daily lives.

"We don't just hold their hands after school, we act as a liaison between parents and teachers," Waddell said. "We help the kids with their daily activities and their personal lives."

The organization works with the girls until they turn 18, helping them prepare for college and get scholarships.

When Waddell has free time, she said she loves to spend it running. She's currently training for the St. Jude half-marathon in December.

Running is just one of the ways she said she rejuvenates and re-energizes herself.

"If you don't take the time to re-energize yourself, that can become what weighs heavily and stresses you out, even more so that you're not able to do a good job for the people that you're dedicated to - even your own family," she said.