Girls on the Run at Forest Street Elementary School in Orange
Girls on the Run of New Jersey East has recently begun serving the Orange School District for the first time. This Girls on the Run (GOTR) council has made a commitment to expand into areas where scholarships are needed through an initiative called Every Girl Can Run!
Girls on the Run is a physical-activity-based youth development program for 3rd-8th graders. Its goal is to bolster confidence and establish a lifetime appreciation of health and fitness. Coaches will meet with their teams twice per week after school for 10 weeks at sites throughout central New Jersey. As the culmination of the programs, girls will participate along with their coaches, family members and other supporters in the Florham Park Jaycees 5K on June 6.
Girls on the Run is being offered at Forest Street Elementary School in Orange at no cost to the participants through a grant provided by the Junior League of the Oranges and Short Hills. Long time sponsor Millburn-based Sneaker Factory is helping provide appropriate footwear where needed. Forest Street teachers and community members will act as coaches, supported by GOTR staff.
Yancisca Cooke, Forest Street principal, said, “Staff and students are so excited (I am also!). We look forward to being one of your “Model Programs.”
This year, Girls on the Run of New Jersey East marks 15 years of serving girls in Essex, Union, Morris, Mercer, and Burlington Counties. For more information or to donate, see www.girlsontherunnj.org.
Girls on the Run International, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, is a youth development program that was founded in 1996 in North Carolina. The organization has served more than one million girls since its creation. The program educates and prepares girls for a lifetime of self-respect and healthy living. Girls on the Run of New Jersey East is the independent council which provides GOTR programming in central New Jersey.
