Bend, Oregon, August 3, 2011, – Girls on the Run (GOTR), a 501 c 3 organization, filed for dissolution early this summer and has transferred its assets and programming to Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Oregon. The board of directors made this tough decision after being inactive during the fall 2010 season, hoping to raise enough funding to restructure their council and resuming programming in spring 2011.
After much consideration, the board opted to find a non-profit to serve as an affiliate in order to utilize their infrastructure and reduce expense for fundraising, management, accounting and supervision. Boys & Girls Clubs was the best fit because of its experience serving youth in Deschutes County and serving as a GOTR host site for several years. Girls on the Run objectives mirror the mission of Boys & Girls Club programming, so both organizations view the move as a consolidation that would educate and prepare girls for a lifetime of self-respect and healthy living.
Sign-ups for Girls on the Run will begin on Tuesday, August 9 at 6pm at the Bend Club location, 500 NW Wall Street during parent orientation meetings. Sign-ups will continue every Tuesday night at 6pm until the program begins the week of September 12. The program will be open to girls in 3rd, 4th and 5th grades. The Bend Branch downtown will be operating a fall program along with a school site at Pine Ridge Elementary school, two times a week immediately afterschool.
The cost per child is $150 for the 12-week session. The session runs September 12 and ends with the Turkey Trot 5K/10K run on Thanksgiving morning. Full and partial scholarships, are available for those who are not able to pay the cost of the program and the process for obtaining scholarships is a simple, short review with the Club Director. All abilities are welcome to participate!
Girls on the Run (GOTR) is a life-changing prevention program that encourages 3rd-5th grade girls to develop self-respect and healthy lifestyles through running. GOTR combines physical training for a 3.1 mile (5k) running event with lessons that help the girls make healthy life style choices. The 12-week sessions include topics that enable girls to effectively problem solve and remain strong during adolescence. Topics include dealing with body image and the media, resisting peer pressure, making healthy decisions, and contributing to the community.
The program utilizes a whole-person approach to elevate emotional, social, mental and physical health. Girls on the Run is not a program that trains girls to compete at an elite running level and coaches do NOT even need to be runners, much less elite runners! Any woman, who lives a healthy lifestyle and is committed to improving the lives of girls, can serve as a coach. A coach training meeting is scheduled for August 27 from 3-7pm and a volunteer application and a background check are required.
To get involved as a coach, or to inquire about fall registration, contact Derek Beauvais Bend Club Director at 541-617-2877 or dbeauvais@bgcco.org.
A warm up 5K will be free, and open to the public on Saturday, October 1 at 9 am to kick-off the Get Going, Oregon month long initiative hosted by OHSU Foundation and the Harold Schnitzer Diabetes Health Center. This will be a simultaneous 5K running event held in Portland, Roseburg, Salem, Warm Springs and Bend.
Girls on the Run will be a beneficiary of the Turkey Trot a 5K run/walk and 10K held on November 24 at 9am in the Old Mill. This holiday event is becoming another Bend tradition as 700 participants bundled up and joined the run last Thanksgiving morning.
