Hundreds of runners, parents, teachers, coaches and volunteers were on hand to participate and support the 2015 fall event. The day began with pre-5K festivities, including sign-in activities, refreshments, music, balloons, T-shirts and a lot of team building activities.
By Kathleen Turpin
For NJ Advance Media
Enthusiastic participants from Hunterdon, Bucks and Warren counties came together at the Upper Elementary New Hope-Soleburg School District campus for Saturday's seventh annual Girls on the Run Fall 5K.
Hundreds of runners, parents, teachers, coaches and volunteers were on hand to participate and support the 2015 fall event. The day began with pre-5K festivities, including sign-in activities, refreshments, music, balloons, T-shirts and a lot of team building activities.
While the day was sunny and bright, it was also very brisk. However, the weather did not stop the over 617 girls, 143 coaches, scores of parent supporters, as well as public runners and walkers.
Some parents accompanied runners, while pushing a sibling in a stroller.
Adult and teen volunteers from the Girls on the Run council as well as from the various communities, helped with registration, food, water and T-Shirt distribution, crowd control, directions and managing the race course.
Teams met on the school's lawn with signs indicating the community where they lived. Some of the teams brought handmade posters with the girls' names and signatures to celebrate their individual and team spirit.
In addition to the untimed 5K race, the younger children were invited to participate in a sprint after the conclusion of the 5K race. Children 7 and younger had the opportunity to run a short Girls on the Run Lollipop race.
While waiting for the start of the race, teen volunteers engaged the children in minor stretching and movement activities, which had everyone laughing and dancing to the DJ's music.
The younger set raced toward the finish line, ran beneath a banner and received a lollipop with ribbons in the colors of the Girls on the Run program.
The bi-annual 5K is the culminating event of the Girls on the Run program.
Girls on the Run has two program offerings for girls; a 3rd-5th Grade Program and a 6th-8th Grade Program. Girls in the 3rd-5th grades participate in a 10-12 week after-school program that is designed to allow every girl to recognize her inner strengths. The curriculum inspires girls to define their lives on their own terms. Physical activity is woven into the program to inspire an appreciation of fitness and to build habits that lead to a lifetime of health.
Heart & Sole is a Girls on the Run new program for middle school girls.
The goal is to create a positive, structured space to learn about themselves, explore new ideas, cultivate empathy, strengthen connections and develop life skills.
The program runs 10 weeks with a curriculum that has themes a pre-teen can relate to. Physical activity includes strength and conditioning appropriate to this age group.
Girls on the Run of Hunterdon, Bucks and Warren Counties are part of 225 councils across the United States and is supported through a team of community volunteers and staff. Certified volunteer coaches facilitate the Girls on the Run curriculum. The Girls on the Run 5K is sponsored by local sponsors, as well as national 5K partners Athieta, LEGO and SmartWool.