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September 29 - Heather

Post Date:September 29, 2011

        I love my long training runs, especially on the cool, crisp mornings in the fall.  During this hour or two I am able to set aside all the roles I play, daughter, friend, sister, wife, mother, teacher, writer, student, and colleague, to clear my head and focus solely on me.  Thoughts are free to meander into my mind without interruptions, and during this time I can plan, wonder, dream, and work out any troubles life has thrown me.  Every step I take reminds me how alive I truly am and how grateful I am to be me.  It wasn’t until these past couple of years that I realized the power of running and the impact it plays on keeping me both physically and mentally healthy. 

Volunteering as a “Girls on the Run St. Louis” coach has allowed me an opportunity to share my passion for running with third and fourth grade girls at my school I teach.   Girls on the Run (GOTR) is an experiential learning program for 8 to 12 year old girls that combine training for a 5K running event with life-changing, self-esteem enhancing, uplifting warm-ups and workouts that encourage emotional, social, mental, and physical development (curriculum guide). Now into my third season of this ten week program, I, along with other volunteers, utilize running as a vehicle for learning activities focused around individual topics in three distinct areas: self, teamwork, and community. 

A very powerful lesson I taught last week helped girls distinguish between comfortable and uncomfortable emotions.  Emphasis was placed on relaying that those uncomfortable emotions such as anger, sorrow, and frustration are not bad or unhealthy and can be dealt with and expressed in healthy ways.  We explained how important it is for the girls to talk with someone when they are upset and that these uncomfortable emotions are not bad at all.  What matters is that the girls do not hurt on the inside or hurt others by not expressing or handling these emotions well.

After lessons of talking and learning about the basics of cooperation (being a good listener by not interrupting and really working to hear and understand what friends are saying) girls learn how to recognize bullying behaviors and what to do if bullied or if witnessing bullying.  Girls don’t realize that the bullying we see in movies, cartoons, or t.v. shows where an older kid is pushing a younger kid around is not the only type of bullying happening every day in our schools.  Girls are surprised to discover that name calling, teasing, putting others down, and spreading rumors are examples of emotional bullying.  It’s this kind of bullying that can be more hurtful than the physical type.  We teach them ways to stay calm, to tell the bully they do not like what is going on, and to tell a trusted adult.  We give them suggestions for helping someone who is being bullied and remind them they never want to be bullies themselves. 

Before working on our service project, we discuss the importance of communities and ways that we can impact them.  This program is not complete without a lesson helping the girls become more aware of the negative ways the media may portray girls. We help them begin to develop the critical thinking skills needed to push aside the negative messages to become kind, strong, healthy, and educated young ladies. Last season our girls received the second place award for their project called “Caring for a Cause” Candy Grams. The girls on the team decided to help a family from their school that was in need.  They sent a letter home to all school parents to let them know what the GOTR team had planned for their community service project. For $.25 any student, parent or faculty member could send a “Candy Gram” to anyone in the school. The coaches donated a lollipop to every student in the school because the girls didn’t want anyone to feel left out if he/she didn’t receive one on the day of the event. The girls gave up their recesses to cut, tape, and sort the candy grams before delivering them to each classroom. They collected $191.00 for the family they were helping. At a GOTR practice the girls made a card that said “We Care About You” and included the money. The family was very touched and thankful! We were so proud of how the girls used their talents to make a difference!

 Because I truly believe the GOTR program significantly impacts many young girls, and I value the power of running, I recently joined the SoleMates team, the charity running leg of Girls on the Run. While pursuing my own goal of running in the ING New York Marathon this upcoming November, I am raising money to ensure a girl a lifetime of self-respect and healthy living.  And as I continue my long training runs in preparation for this race, I can’t help but smile knowing that the many roles I play are what keep me focused, alive, strong, and healthy, ready for anything that comes in my way!

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