Becoming Her Initiative hosts The Hope Table in Gastonia Nov. 21: free beauty bar, glam bags, winter coats and a contest for girls 12 to 22. Turkeys are full.

Girls and young women ages 12 to 22 and their families can pick up winter coats, glam bags and a beauty-bar touch-up for free at a Thanksgiving outreach in Gastonia on Saturday, Nov. 21, though the free turkeys and grocery boxes on offer are already spoken for.

The Hope Table runs from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Tabernacle Baptist Church Family Life Center, 519 W. 19th Ave., Gastonia. It is hosted by Becoming Her Initiative, a nonprofit that works with girls and young women in Charlotte, Mecklenburg County and Gaston County. The event listing says doors open at 12:30 p.m.

“Admission is FREE, and no registration is needed for general community activities,” the organization said. The event is “open to the entire community, especially girls and young women ages 12–22, parents, caregivers, and families.”

Turkey and grocery registration is full

The Hope Table will hand out free Thanksgiving turkeys and grocery boxes to families who signed up in advance. That registration “is currently full,” Becoming Her Initiative said. Families who did register are asked to bring their Eventbrite confirmation, and the listing asks for “only one turkey and grocery registration per household so we can serve as many families as possible.”

Everything else is open to anyone who turns up. “All other items and activities are available while supplies last,” the organizers’ flyer says.

What is on the table

According to the organization and its flyer, the afternoon includes:

  • a girls’ beauty bar with hair and nail touch-ups
  • “I Am Becoming” glam bags for teen girls, while supplies last
  • travel-size hygiene essentials for girls and families
  • winter coats, while supplies last
  • a “Girl Talk” listening session where, the flyer says, girls can “share your voice” to help the group “better serve our community”
  • mentorship information and community resources
  • giveaways

The listing says the Finding Inspiration Foundation will open the youth and family listening session with a short film, followed by a conversation led by Becoming Her “to hear what youth and caregivers need.” Partners Village Heartbeat and Lock’d In Athletics Foundation will also be there.

Flyer for the I Am Becoming social media creative challenge at the Gaston County Hope Table, listing three ways to enter, $150 and $100 gift card prizes, and winners announced Nov. 26
The rules for the "I Am Becoming" creative challenge. Image: supplied by Becoming Her Initiative

A $150 prize for “I am becoming”

Girls and young women ages 12 to 22 can enter the “I Am Becoming” creative challenge for a chance at a gift card. The challenge flyer lists two prizes, a $150 gift card and a $100 gift card, for two winners picked at random, with winners announced on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 26.

Entries start with the words “I am becoming…” and can be a written poem, affirmation or “future-self letter,” a 15- to 30-second Reel or TikTok, or a photo or video of artwork, tagged to the group’s Instagram, TikTok or Facebook accounts. Public posting is optional: “No social media? Submit your creation at the event,” the flyer says. It allows one entry per participant, needs no purchase, and requires parent or caregiver permission for anyone under 18.

Why the group is doing it

Becoming Her Initiative describes its work as prevention. Its website says it serves girls ages 12 to 18 and young women 19 to 22 “who are in or aging out of foster care, as well as those at risk” in Mecklenburg and Gaston counties, and that its mentoring programs are scheduled to launch in spring 2027. Its motto, on every flyer: “Prevention is an Act of Hope.”

The listing says The Hope Table serves families “across Gaston and Mecklenburg counties,” and that details of a Mecklenburg County event “will be announced separately.”

Questions go to info@becomingherinitiatives.org, the listing says. More on the group is at becomingherinitiatives.org.