MAY 2019 • LONGISLANDPRESS.COM 27
GIRLS ON THE RUN
RIGHT FOOT FORWARD
In most running races, the celebration
usually comes at the end, but
when hundreds run in the nonprofit
Girls on the Run Long Island’s upcoming
Spring 2019 5K, the race is
the celebration.
That’s because the June 1 foot race
at Hofstra University in Hempstead
marks the conclusion of their spring
group running-based afterschool
programs for elementary and middle
school-aged girls that teach both personal
development and how to give
back to the community — largely by
emphasizing the power of a positive
attitude.
“Girls on the Run envisions a world
where every girl knows and activates
her limitless potential and is
free to boldly pursue her dreams,”
says Doreen Dunne, council director
of Girls on the Run Long Island.
The local chapter — which started in
Nassau County in 2011 and expanded
to Suffolk County in 2016 — is part of
an Independent Council of Girls on
the Run International, which has a
network of more than 200 councils
across the U.S. and Canada. There are
more than a dozen Girls on the Run
teams on Long Island.
Molly Barker founded Girls on the
Run International in 1996 in Charlotte,
North Carolina with 13 girls in
one school. It has since grown with
the help of almost 100,000 volunteers,
serving hundreds of thousands of
girls annually and more than 350
end-of-season 5K events nationwide.
Over the course of the 10-week program,
girls in grades three through
eight develop essential skills to help
them navigate their worlds and
establish a lifetime appreciation for
health and fitness, organizers say.
It aims to inspire girls to be joyful,
healthy, and confident using a fun
experience-based curriculum that
creatively integrates running at
twice-weekly practices, where coaches
teach life skills through dynamic,
conversation-based lessons, and running
games. The combination of the
research-based curriculum, trained
coaches, and a commitment to serve
all girls is what sets the group apart.
The program culminates with girls
positively impacting their communities
through a service project and being
physically and emotionally prepared
to complete a celebratory 5K event.
-TB
PRESS BUSINESS
For more information about Girls on the Run Long Island, visit gotrlongisland.
org
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