When Sydney Davis started Girls on the Run NJ East in the fall of 2000, she wanted to empower young girls and make them feel strong. Before long, “it just took off,” said Davis, a South Orange resident and mother to two daughters.
Ten years later, the non-profit–which uses the power of running to teach pre-teen girls about self-respect and healthy lifestyles – has grown to serve hundreds of 3rd through 5th graders throughout Northeastern New Jersey. “We’re expecting our biggest spring yet,” Davis said. Girls on the Track is a second program for 6th-8th graders.
Girls on the Run will celebrate its first decade with a gala on January 27, 2011 at Hamilton Park Hotel and Conference Center in Florham Park. There will be a dinner reception, family friendly entertainment and lots of great auction items. Tickets are still available here.
The organization is part of Girls on the Run International, which has a network of over 170 locations across the United States and Canada. Over a 10-week period, girls meet twice weekly with trained coaches who lead them through games, lessons and running practice. The program culminates in a 5K race, in which all the girls participate.
Davis started as a GOTR coach in Millburn and Summit before becoming executive director. Today the program operates in over a dozen communities including Maplewood, Millburn and Montclair. A South Orange location will start this spring. The most popular location is Chatham–“it’s the hottest ticket in town”–and the Maplewood program has expanded three-fold in just the past year.
“The coaches are the heartbeat of the program,” Davis said. “Girls at this age are susceptible to peer pressure but still open to listening to adults. The coaches are their examples and their mentors.”
Davis has seen first-hand what the program does for participants. “I have heard girls say, ‘GOTR turned me into a runner, it taught me I could be an athlete.’” Parents are sometimes skeptical that their daughters will be able to complete the 5K race, until they see their faces as they cross the finish line. “They feel like rock stars,” said Davis.
