Jessica Mendoza Visits Rwanda with The Girl Effect

Jessica Mendoza speaks with girls in Rwanda while visiting as a global ambassador for The Girl Effect in March 2012. Photograph via twitter @NiNyamping

USSSA Pride player Jessica Mendoza is visiting Rwanda for the second time from March 26th to April 1st as a global ambassador with the non-profit organization The Girl Effect.

The Girl Effect is a movement that seeks to intervene in the lives of poverty stricken girls who have just reached adolescence and are at a crossroads.  The organization works to inspire girls around the age of twelve to create a better future for themselves by promoting the importance of getting a formal education, learning to read and write,  and knowing how to stay healthy and HIV negative. It is the Girl Effect’s hope that raising awareness, as well as making schooling and health care more readily available to girls living in poverty, will allow them to marry when they choose and to raise a healthy family.

Mendoza first visited Rwanda with The Girl Effect in March 2011.

You get updates on Mendoza’s trip by following her on twitter @jessmendoza, and you can learn more about The Girl Effect by visiting the organization’s website at girleffect.org.

 

About USSSA Florida Pride:

The USSSA Florida Pride is a professional franchise in the National Pro Fastpitch League that is owned and operated by USSSA. The amateur organization of USSSA has multi-sport coverage and encompasses teams and players from the United States and abroad.

About NPF:

National Pro Fastpitch is headquartered in Nashville, TN. The league, created to give elite female fastpitch players the opportunity to pursue a professional career in their chosen sport, has operated since 1997 under the names of Women’s Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women’s Pro Softball League (WPSL). NPF is the Official Development Partner of Major League Baseball in the category of women’s fastpitch softball since 2002.

About USSSA:

The United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA), headquartered in Osceola County, Florida, USSSA is the World’s Largest Multi-sport Athletic Organization. Founded in 1968, USSSA has grown to over 3.7 million participants, competing in 13 nationally sanctioned sports including Baseball, Fastpitch, Slow Pitch, Karate, Basketball, Soccer and more! For more information on USSSA and to register your team visit USSSA.com. Also be sure to visit USSSAToday.com for the latest USSSA News!