Popular and sincere, the 17-year-old best friends are known for being the girls everyone talks to about anything and everything serious.

Teen pregnancies.

Relationships.

Peer pressure.

They have heard it all, and though Brogdon and Larmond haven’t experienced all of their friends’ problems, they try to help, mostly by lending shoulders to lean on.

Many of their friends veered from seeking help from school counselors because "they figured they would be judged," Brogdon said.

But she knew her female classmates had problems no teenager alone could solve.

"I tried to be there as much as I could, but it’s hard," Brogdon said.

So it was only natural that Brogdon and Larmond would become the catalysts of what may become an annual program to inspire empowerment for female students of color.

This past Saturday, the friends helped lead the Minority Young Women’s Conference: F.R.E.S.H. ’08 (Friendship, Respect, Education, Sisterhood & Health) sponsored by the Montclair Fund for Educational Excellence and the Omicron Xi Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority.

Inside the atrium of the George Inness Annex at Montclair High School, about 50 MHS girls in grades nine through 12 gathered with their peers from Newark, West Orange and East Orange to address the issues they face, such as sex, sexuality, drugs, stereotypes, peer pressure and family problems.

"We are role models in every way, in the way we walk, in the way we talk," MHS English teacher and conference co-coordinator Petal Robertson told the students, who seemed attentive and eager to learn on Saturday morning, creeping toward 9.

Robertson discussed how, many times, young girls tend to avoid each other and make friends with male students instead.

"Women are supportive. Women are here for you," Robertson stressed.

Montclair dermatologist, Dr. Jeanine Downie, the conference keynote speaker, told the girls about her experience growing up in Teaneck. She described herself as a "chunky" teenager who had struggled with acne.

"You need to think about how you present yourself to the world … think about what you are taking into your mouth," Downie told the crowd. "Figure out who you are and be true to yourself."

The day of workshops and discussion sessions, on such topics as health and wellness, self-esteem, sex and teen beauty and appearance, provided a much-needed forum "where they can discuss relevant issues and express their views, said Learning Disabilities teacher-consultant Joyce Hobbs, one of the event coordinators.

One such workshop, centering on self-image and self-esteem, prompted a group of girls to look at themselves in a mirror and share what they considered some of their positive qualities and characteristics.

"Beauty," said one girl. "Sense of humor," observed another. "Goal driven," noted a third.

Workshop co-facilitator and Alpha Kappa Alpha member Keshia Trotman, an administrative analyst for the state Department of Law and Public Safety, explained to the girls that as young female minorities they should have the strength to exert a "positive self-image" when facing stereotypes.

"Try and set some goals that you can achieve," advised Trotman, who conducted the workshop with her mother, Newark Public Schools Title 1 Supervisor JoeAnn Trotman.

"Where we are is not where we started," JoeAnn Trotman said. "We had a plan, we had assistance and we had goals."

Fourteen-year-old MHS freshman Imari Jeudy said she attended the conference to "get a better understanding of myself."

Jeudy said that more forums such as Saturday’s conference should be offered, not only for girls, but for boys as well. "People can learn better to express themselves rather than fighting," she said.

Brogdon said she was happy with the turnout.

"I want to continue this next year," said Brogdon, who aspires to be a doctor.

"I’m motivated by helping people."

Contact Tanya Drobness at drobness@montclairtimes.com.