You Can Be Anything event a big success

Event including mentorship spotlight on trades as careers

At eight years old, Xoe Nickerson knows what she wants to be when she grows up.

“I want to be a construction worker,” she said, after spending the day Nov. 9 mentoring in the woodworking trades with Freshco blue-collar CEO Mandy Rennehan at the RennDuPrat shop in Yarmouth. Oh, and she also wants to be a karate instructor a couple of evenings a week.

The fact is, the possibilities of what Xoe and other girls can be is endless. And therein lies the message that was being sent to young girls on this day: you can be anything.

The day was a collaboration between Rennehan, Frescho, Mattel and Barbie, and was aimed at empowering girls and placing focus on careers that may not be seen as traditional for women – the trades. A construction Barbie was being celebrated on this day – the latest in about 180 careers the doll has portrayed through the years.

Rennehan, who has been repeatedly recognized as one of Xoe Nickerson of Yarmouth got to spend the day mentoring with entrepreneur Mandy Rennehan last week as part of a Barbie/Mattel initiative called You Can Be Anything. On this day the focus was on trades and seeing more women become involved in them. Afterwards there was a celebration at a Pop-Up Party at the Yarmouth Mall. the top female entrepreneurs in a kind of, I would say, a North . this is just incredible,” Rennehan Canada, was thrilled with how American brand like me, that said at a Pop-Up Party held at the the day went. came from a small town and Yarmouth Mall. “The energy is off

“The fact that we can bring combine us together and see the charts.” a global brand like Mattel and these young girls in pink, happy . . See A WHIRLWIND, page A4