The Girls on the Run program culminated its second season recently with a 5K run from the airport to Dalton City.
Fourteen girls and eight adults made the run that finished with a pizza party.
Ten-year-old Brittney Bradford prodded on her cousin Makayla Crager, 9. “Toward the end, it was tiring and I wasn’t sure I could finish, but she held onto my hand and pulled me,” Crager said. “I never thought I could go that far.”
Laila McGuire, 10, said the run was welcome, coming as it did after a three-day trip to the Yukon. “It felt good because I was sitting in a van for three days.”
Girls on the Run is an international program that aims to promote self-respect and healthy lifestyles among preteen girls. It’s sponsored locally by the AWARE women’s shelter in Juneau and includes discounted shoes and shirts from corporate sponsors.
The program is open to girls in grades 3-5, though second-graders and sixth-graders have been allowed to join in, organizers said.
Starting in February, the group ran twice a week, to distances up to five kilometers (three miles). The training includes lessons on how to get along.
“Even when we fight, we make it up when we go running,” McGuire said. Bradford said what she’s learned from the program is “just never give up – keep trying.”
Head coach Liana Shull, clinical program director at Lynn Canal Counseling, said the program is worthwhile. Program lessons include healthy eating and lifetime habits.
“They want girls to take away problem-solving skills, a better sense of self, knowing their boundaries, and how to work cooperatively to achieve something and work together toward a common goal,” she said.
An important lesson, she said, is showing that reaching a difficult goal is possible by taking small steps and working hard.
Lessons include addressing bullying and supporting each other. “It’s about helping them develop a more solid character, speaking their minds and valuing their opinions.”
“Some girls like the running and some don’t but I think each of the girls was able to get something from the lessons. The coaching is hands on. We’re right there working with them, so there’s some role modeling going on,” Shull said.
The program is seeking a head coach for next spring. If interested, call AWARE at 586-6623.