Central PA Medicine Summer 2021 - 17

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What are four women doing playing Star Tag (freeze tag) with
a group of girls at Adams Ricci Park on Wednesday afternoons?
And what am I doing on Monday afternoons running around my
house and having a dance party in front of my computer? These
are part of our Girls on the Run workouts. Girls on the Run
is a national program that helps to build self-esteem and teach
positive life lessons to girls in third through fifth grade. This was
my first season as a coach, and due to COVID we were a hybrid
team of virtual and in-person activities. As is the case with many
volunteer activities, I got as much out of it as the girls did! Our
team of four coaches included three of us from the running group
you have read about in previous editions of Central PA Medicine.
My friend Tami has coached for five years and her two daughters
were part of our group.
The most
important parts
of the program
were the life
lessons which
we conveyed to
the girls.
The program is very structured, with training modules we
watched online and manuals giving us detailed instructions for
our lessons. Although the name would imply a focus on running,
that is secondary. The goal is to complete a 5K race by running,
walking or even using a wheelchair if needed. However, the most
important parts of the program were the life lessons which we
conveyed to the girls. These included finding your Star Power
(self-esteem) and helping others to find theirs, expressing feelings
in a positive way, finding good friends, standing up for others and
finding joy. Each day's activities focused on one of these messages.
For example, we would run across the field and back, then after
each lap the girls would write on a poster something that gives
them joy. Each lesson concluded with an Energy Award, a cheer
that was done to recognize one of the girls. These included the
banana cheer (my favorite) and the dead bug cheer, a favorite
of the girls (lie on your back and wave your arms and legs). The
lessons at the park were the most fun both for the girls and the
coaches, but we did our best with the virtual lessons via Zoom.
By the end of the season all of the girls, together with family
members or friends acting as running buddies, completed the
5K at the park. They were a wonderful group of girls, many of
whom had participated in the program in the past and chose to
do it again. There is also a community service project required
as a part of the program. The girls had to compromise to choose
one project to do as a team. As we had many animal lovers in
our group, the girls chose to donate pet food and supplies to a
local animal shelter.
All in all it was a great experience for me, my fellow coaches
Tami, Esther and Sam, and I think for the girls as well. If you
ever have the opportunity to participate as a coach, be a running
buddy for the 5K race, or have your child or grandchild join a
team I sincerely hope you will choose to be a Girl on the Run!
Central PA Medicine Summer 2021 17
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Central PA Medicine Summer 2021

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