BYOU Magazine Brings Popular Teen Celebrities to the California Women’s Conference to Help Build Self-Esteem in Girls

Denver, Colorado -  The newest publication for tween/teen girls, BYOU “Be Your Own You” Magazine, with a mission to build self-esteem in girls around the globe, brings a celebrity-studded panel of positive teen role models to inspire girls and moms to the California Women’s Conference the evening of Sunday, September 23, at the Long Beach Convention Center.

BYOU Magazine Girls “B-Empowered” Panel features Singer & Dove Movement for Self-Esteem Partner Jessica Jarrell (who toured with Justin Bieber and Cody Simpson), Disney’s “So Random” stars Allisyn Arm & Audrey Whitby, Girl Scout performer Ani Hesse, actress Katherine McNamara (starring in Disney’s upcoming movie “Girl v. Monster”), actress & award-winning filmmaker Tara Nicole Azarian, and actress & anti-bullying advocate Cassandra Perkins (starring in the upcoming movie “Bully Girls”).  The panel will discuss important topics for girls today such as friendships, bullying, body image, Internet safety, self-esteem, education, and empowerment. It is hosted and moderated by BYOU Magazine’s Founder & Publisher, Debra Gano, who is a national self-esteem expert and best-selling author. Also making a special performing appearance is Nickelodeon’s “How To Rock” star Cymphonique Miller, who is a partner and spokesmodel for the BYOU “Be Your Own You” apparel brand.

The California Women’s Conference, which is the largest women’s conference in the nation and takes place September 23-24, has a long-time reputation for inspiring and empowering women, and for the first time ever, is opening its doors to teen and tween girls ages 8-18 the evening of Sunday, September 23. “This is about moving the Women’s Conference forward with the next generation,” states Michelle Patterson, the new Executive Producer for The California Women’s Conference. “As a mother, it’s personally important that I empower my 14-year-old daughter with the tools she will need to be successful in the future. The California Women’s Conference wants to share this with every mother and daughter.”

BYOU Magazine Publisher Debra Gano, herself a mom to a 10-year-old girl, agrees and is thrilled to partner with Patterson. “We’re very excited to be a part of this amazing event. These are very formative years for girls in this vulnerable age group and much of what they are exposed to isn’t healthy,” says Gano. “Girls today are bombarded with unrealistic standards of beauty and pressures to fit in, and the amount of technology available 24/7 can cause a girl to ‘grow up’ before she is emotionally mature, making her susceptible to unwise decisions. With an estimated 90% of girls today suffering from low self-esteem, we want to empower our girls as much as possible and feel by featuring popular positive celebrity role models at this event to inspire and educate girls, we can make a difference in their lives.” Gano speaks nationally on self-esteem issues and will be autographing her award-winning “Mom’s Choice” Gold Award Heartlight Girls book, Beauty’s Secret: A Girl’s Discovery of Inner Beauty, endorsed by Marianne Williamson and Jack Canfield, at the event.

The evening takes place from 5:00-9:00 PM and also includes musical performances, an everyday-girl panel, a magic show, a “red carpet” event with autographing & photo opportunities with the stars, and shopping with over 250 vendors, including tween and teen related products on “BYOU Street,” hosted by BYOU “Be Your Own You” Apparel. Tickets are $29 and can be purchased at www.californiawomensconference.com.

About BYOU “Be Your Own You” Magazine-
BYOU “Be Your Own You” Magazine targets ‘tween’ girls ages 8-15, with a mission to build self-esteem in girls in fun and powerful ways. Itfeatures positive celebrity role models, ‘real’ girls making a difference, and informative articles to help navigate distressing issues girls face today such as bullying, friendships, peer pressure, and body image.  It also gives girls opportunities to be featured themselves and entertains with games, contests, giveaways and more – all with the objective of empowering and building self-esteem. Founded by girls’ self-esteem expert and best-selling author Debra Gano, BYOU Magazine gives girls the freedom to be themselves, to know their value, and to inspire them to not only make their own lives more fulfilling and joyful, but to make the world a better place. It is distributed nationally through Barnes & Noble and other bookstores or available online at http://www.BYOUmagazine.com The magazine’s message is reinforced with Be Your Own You positive-messaging apparel and products available at http://www.BeYourOwnYou.com.

BYOU Magazine Founder & Publisher Debra Gano and the teen celebrities appearing at the conference are available for media interviews - please call (855) BYOU-MAG (296-8624) for more information.

About the California Women’s Conference –
The predecessor of the California Women’s Conference (CWC), namely the California Governor & First Lady’s Conference on Women was an annual non-partisan event, and was created in 1985 by then-Governor George Deukmejian, to address the high failure rate among women-owned businesses by giving women entrepreneurs greater access to funding and other helpful resources. Selecting the city of Long Beach as the event’s host, city officials and businesses quickly became enthusiastic supporters. Then-First Lady Gloria Deukmejian assumed responsibility for the conference, which became known as the California Governor and First Lady’s Conference. Since then, the CWC has always attracted a highly respected and celebrated list of speakers. Today, the tradition of enthusiastically serving women-owned businesses continues under the stewardship of Michelle Patterson, CEO of EventComplete as an internationally acclaimed forum for the world’s most influential voices, hearts and minds, and will be held at the Long Beach Convention Center on September 23-24, 2012. For tickets and more information about this event visit: http://www.californiawomensconference.com.