July 4, 2008

Go, Girl, Go!



I feel so blessed to have had the opportunity to lead a girls-only running camp last week. As many of you know, Girls On The Run is an organization I have been interested in for some time. Living in Brewton, people do not really care about physical activity, much less running. The lack of opportunities for young girls makes me sad. So many of my students have never had the athletic experiences I had when I was their age. So... I tried to start a GOTR club, but couldn't raise the funds. Route 2- I started my own club, using materials from the Women's Sports Association. I didn't know how many girls would commit, so I decided to try a summer day camp. The YMCA was very supportive, especially my yoga teacher, Vivian. She has 2 college-aged daughters and wanted to help lead. Together, we planned a 4 day camp for girls 8-13. We ended up with 16 young ladies. Each day had a different message- The Skinny Struggle, Drugs & Alcohol, Bullying, and Anger Management. I taught them about running at different paces and how to build endurance. Viv taught them yoga and stretching. We also had discussions and activities to go along with each lesson. I pretended to be Rachel Ray and we made a healthy snack each day. Most importantly, I wanted the girls to feel good about themselves. The week was very successful, and hopefully encouraged the girls to try new physical activities. If all goes well, we will be able to start a running club for girls this fall. Now more than ever, I am so passionate about the charity I am trying to raise money for- GOTR. Below is a link to the newspaper article about the camp.
http://www.brewtonstandard.com/articles/2008/06/25/sports/sports90.txt - Article advertising the camp

4 comments:

  1. Rebecca, this might seem strange, but i just ran across your post in Runners world on start corrals for Chicago where you talked about your flying pig time. The story sounded so familiar, because i remember standing next to a girl at the start of the pig who was telling me she wanted to break the 3:10 mark to qualify for boston's best time standard. Your story stuck out in my mind because I remember thinking you probably got screwed by the course change. At any rate, it's pretty wierd that I saw the post just browsing through the website, then clicked on your blogspot link and saw your photo. You may not remember me but we talked for a while and we both started off with the 3:10 pace group even though I was just running the half. I was the guy from Jackson, MS. I ran a 1:31 half at the pig and will be trying for my boton qualifying time from start corral "b" in Chicago. I am also raising money for a charity but there is a picture of me and my family on it so maybe this will jog your memeory.

    http://stj.convio.net/site/TR/SignatureEvent/General?px=1647522&pg=personal&fr_id=3380

    At any rate, good luck in Chicago and maybe i'll run into you again. However, you may be in corral a. If not, I'll be running with the 3:10 pace group in corral b, trying to run between a 3:06 and a 3:10. If you want to email me, it's:

    rarmour@trustmark.com

    Pretty strange huh?

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  2. I can't top that last comment, but hey--I really dig your posts. I will also be giving to your charity in the next few days...

    It is amazing to me that you are doing what you do in Alabama none the less. Good luck...

    I'm MN Runnerguy from the runnersworld.com discussion boards.

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  3. LA -

    Way to go on the summer camp! I love the pic.! You provided those girls with one more experience that will have an impact on the women they will become. That is powerful! I say, keep pushing the GOTR program in your area. Instead of starting your own council is there any way you can branch off of another local? I'm not sure where you're located in comparison to other chapters, but we're about 100 miles away from our "home" office. It's worth a shot! Enjoy the rest of your summer! When do you start school again? We're back in just about a month. Boo-hoo!

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  4. Anonymous7/31/2008

    I've been meaning to comment on your blog for a while and just wanted to say, I think what you are doing for these young kids is wonderful...

    You are a great inspiration not only as a runner but for the dedication as a teacher and helping the youth...

    ReplyDelete