Marching Beauties
At Marching Beauties, we believe every girl deserves a safe place where she feels seen, supported, and encouraged to become her best self. Through sisterhood, mentorship, and enriching programs, we help girls in South Central Los Angeles build confidence, strengthen their emotional and mental resilience, dream without limits, and discover the power of loving themselves while growing alongside one another.
45
Youth Participants
2
Officer Mentors
Marching Beauties began as the personal journey of our founder, Trayonna Rankins. Although she was raised in a loving and supportive family, Trayonna, like many young girls, searched for love, happiness, and validation outside of herself before discovering that true confidence and self-worth come from within. Through faith, personal growth, and perseverance, she found her purpose and became passionate about helping other girls recognize their own value.
Inspired by her journey, Trayonna founded Marching Beauties in 2011 to create a safe, supportive space where girls could build confidence, develop emotional and mental resilience, and discover their full potential. Officially established as a nonprofit in 2015, Marching Beauties continues to empower girls in South Central Los Angeles to love themselves, dream big, walk in confidence, and grow together in sisterhood.
How It Began
How It’s Going
At Marching Beauties, every number represents a girl whose life has been changed through our program that provides the support they need to thrive in school, at home, and beyond. Over the years we have served 768 girls across South Central Los Angeles.
51 workshops 21 program cohorts
6 community conferences, 95% participant retention rate
84 dedicated volunteers Reached, 2,376 community members
100% high school graduation rate, 100% college acceptance
21 scholarships Awarded towards college
These outcomes reflect more than statistics, they represent young women who have found their voice, discovered their worth, and gained the confidence to pursue their dreams.
Beauties
Alumni Beauties
Alumni Leaders
Our weekly Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) programming is delivered in partnership with local schools, where we provide on-campus sessions for students. Participants, whom we proudly call our Beauties, are selected by school staff based on their potential to benefit from our programming. We serve girls ages 13–17, equipping them with the social-emotional skills, confidence, leadership development, and academic support needed to prepare for college and future success.
To expand our impact beyond our weekly school-based programming, we host quarterly empowerment conferences that bring together girls from across our community for workshops, leadership development, and inspirational speakers. We also offer a virtual mentorship program that supports beauties weekly.
Guadalupe,
Alumni Beauty
DJ,
Beauty
Youth Spotlights
Get Involved With Marching Beauties
Contact us to sign-up, donate, or get involved!
Trayonna Rankins – Founder
info@marchingbeauties.org
Program Needs
Transportation
Transportation is another critical need. Reliable transportation enables us to take our Beauties on educational field trips, career exploration visits, leadership conferences, and cultural experiences that broaden their horizons. These opportunities provide valuable exposure, helping our girls discover new pathways, dream bigger, and prepare for future success.
Funding
Additional funding is essential to expand our program and serve more Beauties throughout the community. Increased financial support allows us to provide ongoing programming for new cohorts and our alumni program.
Mentors
Marching Beauties need dedicated mentors who can inspire our Beauties by exposing them to women making a positive impact across a variety of careers and industries. Connecting our girls with accomplished women helps them broaden their perspectives, build confidence, and envision new possibilities for their own futures.
Ways To Support
In partnership with Project Blue, law enforcement officers serve as mentors, positive role models, and trusted community partners for our youth.
CSP female officers engage with Marching Beauties participants by sharing their personal journeys beyond the badge. These authentic conversations build trust, foster positive relationships between law enforcement and young girls, and provide mentorship that empowers participants to see themselves as confident leaders with limitless potential.
Officer Cristal, Officer Karla, and Officer Adrianna helped organize and support our 5K walk in Santa Monica, bringing the community together to celebrate health, empowerment, and sisterhood. Their dedication and partnership helped make the event a meaningful and inspiring experience for everyone who participated.
This partnership has created safe spaces for open dialogue, strengthened trust between young girls and law enforcement, and shown our Beauties that women belong in positions of leadership. By seeing female officers lead with confidence, compassion, and integrity, our girls begin to see those same qualities within themselves and recognize that they, too, have the ability to lead, serve, and create meaningful change in their communities.
