Page 31 - BusinessWest May 29, 2023

“The goal, really, is for them to increase their confidence and be able to achieve something they haven’t achieved before.”
— volunteer.
“I think it touches the heart of a lot of people,
thinking about themselves at that age and what they needed and probably could have benefited from and didn’t have. So I think they’re filling a gap, and they want to give back” she explained. “And I think teachers see a lack of social and emotional learning in schools. The days are so busy. So it’s a way to give this kind of education to some kids.
“They also learn stuff from this,” Hoyt went on. “I think the reason we have coaches come back season after season is because they are also ben- efiting from it. I love coaching. I feel like I learned a lot from it. And there are lessons that are really great at any age; they work for all the coaches too.”
Keeping on Track
The end of the fall and spring seasons end with a 5K celebration, with the spring event typically being the larger of the two. That will take place on Saturday, June 3 at Western New England Univer- sity, where about 4,000 runners, families, coaches, and supporters are expected to gather.
Registration opens at 8:30 a.m., fun events get
underway at 9:30, a group warmup begins at 10, and the walk/run steps off at 10:30. The registration cost is $30 for adults and $10 for youth and includes an event shirt. Volunteers are still welcome to sign up. For more information about the event, how to register, and volunteer opportunities, visit www.girlsontherunwesternma.org.
“We have families come with coolers and lawn chairs and signs, and they set up like they’re tailgating,” Hoyt said. “It’s really fun. It’s a very special day ... it’s very unifying. They feel like they’re part of something bigger.”
She emphasized that the 5K, like other GOTR activities, is not about achieving a time, but about personal growth.
“I feel like this redefines what running means to them. I think that a lot of kids think, if they’re a runner, it means they have to run
From left, Molly Hoyt, Alison Berman, and Coleen Ryan say Girls on the Run changes not only the participants’ lives, but often the culture of their schools.
marathons or win races. Here, they start understanding that anyone can be a runner because it’s super individual, and what you get out of it is what you want.”
Hoyt said her daughter took part in the program and had never been a runner, and now she runs cross country at school.
“We hear that from a lot of kids; they just did the program and really weren’t into the running piece while they were doing Girls on the Run, but discovered that actually they can do it if they want to. So I do think it redefines the whole concept of being physically
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