Girls Rock Philly says it will close in 6 weeks without a fundraising boost

Girls Rock Philly, the nonprofit with a flagship summer rock camp for young people, said it will have to close its doors by the end of the year without major financial assistance in the next few weeks. The organization’s first weeklong summer camp was held in 2007.

The vast majority of the organization’s annual budget comes from grants, which have been slammed by COVID-19 and recession fears, said a news release issued by the organization. Girls Rock is trying to raise $50,000 to get to January, when grant-making cycles resume. The release also said Girls Rock has no debts and that “all money that comes into the organization is directly utilized for operations and programming, not to relieve debt burden.”

“We are a scrappy organization that lives off of less than $250,000 a year,” board chair Evan Thornburg told attendees at a summer showcase in July.

Families pay tuition on a sliding scale for kids to attend the camp, from nothing to upward of $400. The camp enrolls girls, nonbinary and trans youth. Average monthly bills are about $10,000, according to the release, which was signed by RJ Thornburg, of Olde Kensington’s bahdeebahdu art gallery, GRP administrator Yvonne Thornburg, and Evan Thornburg, RJ’s daughter.

The 2023 camp took place last month at Kipp North Philadelphia Charter Academy, with 50 campers learning instruments, forming bands, and writing songs. At the end of the week, campers performed at the Rotunda and recorded their music at Spice House Sounds, according to the Girls Rock website.

Local musicians performed for campers each day; a past summer featured a session with New Orleans band Tank and the Bangas.

For 16 years, Girls Rock has nurtured the musical abilities of hundreds of Philly kids. Back in 2007, in that first week of camp, kids were already thrilled to be rocking out.

“I’m here to express feelings,” Kellie Gordon told The Inquirer at the time.

Potential donors can contact the organization’s operations and grants manager, Yvonne Thornburg at admin@girlsrockphilly.org.