KATU(PORTLAND, Ore.) — “You are inspiring.” “You are brilliant.” “You are gorgeous.”
These are just a few of the empowering handwritten messages middle school girls in Oregon received on compact mirrors on Thursday.
The mirrors, part of a community service project to build girls’ confidence, were handed out at Rock Creek Middle School in Happy Valley, a town just outside Portland. All of the mirrors have a sticker saying “Love My Reflection” on the outside and a positive message on the inside written with a magic marker.
Seventh graders Avery Burn and Genae Vanek were the two behind the project.
They said they hoped to help stop some of the obsessive, negative self-conscious thoughts so many girls have at their age.
“We kind of just used words someone told us before that made us feel great at the time,” Genae Vanek told ABC News affiliate KATU.
Her friend Burn said, “When people open it, I want them to think they’re inspiring, beautiful and awesome.”
Rock Creek Assistant Principal Gregory Harris told ABC News that he thinks what these girls are doing is “phenomenal.”
“In middle school, self-esteem is a huge issue for many girls especially with issues like cyber bullying and bullying in general,” Harris said. “Having two girls trying to combat these big problems on their own is pretty amazing and incredible.”
The compact mirrors were donated by a local beauty store, KATU reported, adding they plan to collect more and spread their message to other North Clackamas School District middle schools after this month.
The girls’ families did not immediately respond to ABC News’ phone messages and emails requesting additional comment.
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