GOTR Community Service Project

As most of you know I’m coaching a program called Girls On The Run (GOTR). The program is for girls ages 8-11 and it “educates and prepares girls for a lifetime of self-respect and healthy living”. We go through a number of exercises and activities each time we meet, and the program ends with the girls running a local 5K.

The season has 24 lessons that focus on three main topics:

1. All About Me – Getting to know who I am and what I stand for

2. Building My Team – Understanding the importance of cooperation

3. Community Begins With Me – Learning about community and working on a community project

Community Begins With Me

We started on “Community Begins With Me” a couple weeks and began discussing what a community is, what communities the girls are a part of, and what it takes for a community to run smoothly. We then started talking about the community service project with them and had them start thinking about what they would like to do as a group for their community project.

Developing The Project

We brainstormed with the girls last Tuesday to help them come up with a great community project idea. The project had to be something that we could complete during one session (one hour time limit) and at our regular meeting site (Carmel Valley Community Rec Center). This ruled out anything that took a lot of time, or involved us having to go somewhere else to complete the project.

Some of the ideas that they came up with were:

• Create puppets for a puppet show to benefit a local hospital
• Create holiday cards for the elderly and homeless
• Collect clothing for a homeless shelter
• Make cards for a local hospital
• Collect shoes to donate
• Collect toys/canned food/clothing for a shelter

We took a secret vote for the above ideas (eyes closed, hands raised so no one’s feeling was hurt if their idea wasn’t chosen) and the winner was.....

Creating holiday cards for the elderly/homeless!

One idea that I didn’t move onto the voting stage? “Going to a hobo village and giving out food!”. Umm… hobo village? Ha ha. What? Wait, I think there is actually one right around my storage unit downtown. No jokes… it’s a bit colorful down there. I informed the girls that “hobos” isn’t really a nice name for homeless people and that they probably shouldn’t call them that. They seemed a bit confused … apparently K-12 education has updated their lingo since I was last in school.

Anyways, we then went around the group of girls and had them all list something that they would bring to help make the cards. We had a long list of items including: envelopes, markers, colored pencils, glitter, pipe cleaners, construction paper, stickers, crayons, gel pens, and envelopes.

I then needed to figure out a place that we could send the cards. I figured a hospital or senior home might not want a random package of cards to show up on their door, so I looked to see if there were formal charities or organizations set up that would fit with our project. Luckily, I found two! While doing my research I found two programs that I thought the girls would enjoy, and decided to present both of them to the girls as options to see which they liked better. While they weren't hospitals or senior centers as they were originally hoping for, they were great options that would work for our project.

Option 1 - "Holiday Mail For Heroes"

http://www.redcross.org/holidaymail

This is a program put together by the American Red Cross which allows Americans to "send a touch of home" to US service members and veterans across the country and abroad.

Option 2 - "Make A Child Smile" (MACS)

http://www.makeachildsmile.org/index.shtml

This organization provides emotional support to families whose children suffer from chronic or life-threatening illness. Most of these children are chronically ill and some are terminally ill.

There were a few guidelines for both of the programs, they both prohibited glitter due to health concerns, they also both recommended leaving our religious references or specific holiday greetings (since not everyone celebrates Christmas), and for the children’s cards they sadly asked that the cards did not contain the phrases “Get well soon” or “Get Better”, since many of the children in the program have illnesses with no known cure and unfortunately never were going to get better. Wow.. so sad. :o( The site suggested instead to say things such as “Wishing you well”, “Praying for you”, or “Thinking of you”.

Executing the Community Project

The girls showed up last Thursday armed with supplies and a ton of energy. They were ready to get their markers out and start their cards and I struggled a bit at first to calm them down and get them to stop and listen to the guidelines. DOWNER ALERT! Nothing erases the smile of a girl holding markers and pipe cleaners than someone telling them that their card should be cheery but not say things such as “get well soon”, because these children that they would be sending cards too most likely were NOT going to be getting well soon. Yes, call me Eeyore.

The girls perked back up quickly though when I said that I had profiles of 14 different kids which included pictures of them, information about their condition, a list of their favorite things and interests, and information about their siblings if they had any.

I honestly thought that the girls would be split between wanting to make cards for the military versus the kids. I was wrong! All of the girls immediately started yelling “I want a kid!” and grabbing for a profile. Since I only had 14 profiles and we had 24 girls, some of them had to share a kid or some started on their cards for the military first.

The other coaches and I walked around while the girls were creating their cards to give them ideas on what to write, make sure that they were following the guidelines, and to help share the load of supplies between the girls. I broke up two fights over a book of stickers but besides that the girls shared very well.

While the girls were making their cards one of the girls was really excited to make her card for her “new friend” because the girl’s birthday was the same month as hers! Then she noticed that the girl was actually born the same year as her. Then the sad realization set in .. “wait….” She said. “This girl is only a little bit older than I am…” …. And I think I know the part she was thinking but didn’t say. “And she’s dying..”. Yes, so sad. :o( The girls really got into making the cards and there were so many cute ones created. In total the girls created 35 cards. We had 11 for our military service members and 24 kids for the Make A Child Smile Program!

Pop-Up Present Card

PC Happy Holidays Card

Cards For The Military

Disney Themed Card

Present Card

"We Have A Lot In Common" Cards

I think our community project was a great success and I think the girls had a lot of fun completing it!

I Was Mistaken For an American Gladiator

Yes, I was actually mixed up with an American Gladiator, kind of.

It all started a week ago. I received a message through Facebook from a woman who worked at a an organization called Girls Inc. Here is part of the message:

"The reason I am contacting you is that we are having a summer day camp at the Mission San Luis Rey in Oceanside Ca. Here at Girls Inc, we inspire all girls to be, "Strong, Smart, and Bold." That is the name of our camp as well. For the "Strong" part of the camp I will be teaching the girls about sports and nutrition. We are looking for inspirational women to come and speak to our girls one day for maybe about an hour and share their story. I was researching marathon runners and I found you. When I read your profile, I thought you would be a perfect fit for our organization. If you are interested in maybe coming and speaking, that would be great. I am sure you are pretty busy but if you have some extra time, we would love to have you."

Wow! I read this and was incredibly flattered that someone thought that I was an "inspirational" woman! I just run so much so I can eat all the time! No, I'm kidding. But still, this really surprised me that someone would find me online and draw from what public information that they found on me, that I could be someone who could inspire young girls. I was totally interested!

I went to the organization website she provided in her email to find out more about them. What was I immediately met with? WEBSENSE! For the category of "sex"? Are you kidding me? We have the craziest (most annoying) web blocking system ever in the office! I sent the message to David and he looked at the site (not kiddie p*rn) and said it looked legitimate and that it seemed like a great organization. I was finally able to check out the site when I got home.

About Girls Inc:

Girls Incorporated is a national nonprofit youth organization dedicated to inspiring all girls to be strong, smart, and bold. With roots dating to 1864, Girls Inc has provided vital educational programs to millions of American girls, particularly those in high-risk, underserved areas. Today, innovative programs help girls confront subtle societal messages about their value and potential, and prepare them to lead successful, independent, and fulfilling lives.

The next day I called the number that the woman gave in her message and also emailed her, and heard back from her earlier this week. Here is where the humor starts. We started talking about marathon running and my background, and she was asking me how I started running, how long I had been running, if I did any other sports. And then she said "Well this will be so great for the girls to hear you talk, and its great that you're a mother too".

HUH?

I said "Um, I'm not a mother. I don't have any kids. I do have two dogs, but no children." And she said "You aren't? But what about those pictures of you with kids?" I was thinking huh? Was she talking about facebook? (Which would be weird because if we aren't facebook friends she can't see anything but my profile picture, which hasn't been one holding a baby in months!) I said "If you saw me with a kid it was probably my best friend's, but not mine." So then we talk a bit more and then she told me how they will be teaching the girls about nutrition, and how it was great that I was a fitness model.

HUH?

Ha ha! Me? A fitness model? I haven't touched a weight in 3 years since I gave up on my personal trainer! Suddenly I realized something. I wonder if she was mixing me up with MoniCa Carlson, fitness model, mother.... and AMERICAN GLADIATOR by the name of Jet!

American Gladiator JET

As this hit me, I was suddenly deflated. I thought oh, she didn't find me and think that *I* was inspiring, she wanted this other lady. I said "Wait, I think you have me mixed up with Monica with a C Carlson, she's a fitness model and American Gladiator." The girl seemed confused and asked if that other lady lived here in San Diego. I did a quick google search and said no, she lives in Oregon. She was confused and silent again. She said "But I found your profile on Athlinks and it said you live in San Diego". I said "Okay, well if you found me on Athlinks that is me, but when you searched more about "me" I think you got me mixed up at some point with the American Gladiator!"

Luckily as it turns out, she was originally looking for me and did want me! (whew, ego unbruised) Somewhere along the line though during her web research, she did end up start mixing up me and Jet though. That's okay. I suppose we do look a little bit alike. From the neck up! Hey, at least I wasn't mistaken for the other American Gladiator HELLGA! Ha ha!

American Gladiator Hellga

So the two week session on "Strength" was running this week and next week. Since I will be in Paris next week, we agreed that I'd come in yesterday (Friday). I was excited for this honor and opportunity but was suddenly nervous about giving a speech. What should I say? How much should I say? What will the girls find interesting? How will I be inspiring? How do I not end up being boring? I thought about everything for a bit and then decided to just sit down and write my "story". Why do I run, how did I get started, and what does it mean to me?

Well, as you can tell from my blogs, I am not short with words. I ended up telling my story over the course of five pages. Single spaced. Wow. As I typed it and reread it, I really started getting emotional. Running has been something that I've discovered not all that long ago, and in that short period of time it has had the most profound affect on my life and not only has improved my health, but it has improved my self confidence, happiness, and given me more of a purpose in life. I love running, and marathon running is something that means even more to me.

So I read my story a few times and practiced telling it. I then realized that I might bore the girls to tears talking so much so I started gathering things I had that would go along with my story. I pulled down some of my medals from my medal rack, I pulled out my scrapbook of race numbers and pictures, I found some of my running food and running gear. I put it all in a bag to bring for the talk and hoped that it would be well received.

I think part of the reason that I was so nervous was that I didn't know my audience. I don't know anyone who has kids between 6-12. Well okay I know two people, but I'd say I've probably spent less than 5 minutes in the past 10 years interacting with a girl that age. I had no idea what they were like! I wasn't sure how to talk to them and put things in a state that would mean anything to them. Well, fingers crossed right?

So the next morning it was time to go talk! As I drove up to the camp I kept going over the talk in my head. It was a 45 minute drive so I had a lot of time. Upon getting there I called the girl who had contacted me and she met me outside. She showed me the room where we'd be meeting and brought me in and started introducing me to the girls. OMG they were so cute! They were all friendly and outgoing and were all excited to introduce themselves. I'm around children so infrequently that I forget how energetic and happy the are. I'm sure that sounds stupid...

Anyways I pulled out some of the goodies for show and tell, introduced myself, and then started my speech. And then... about 10 seconds into it I got interrupted with questions and comments. So I talked with the girls a bit, and then continued. Only to be interrupted again 10 seconds later. I suddenly realized that I wasn't going to have to stand in front of them and lecture for 30 minutes as I thought, this was going to be more of an interactive story telling and sharing session. Suddenly I was so at ease. With each thing I said the girls would stop and ask questions and then tell me something about them or their lives that related. Have I mentioned yet how cute I thought this was?

So I talked about running and racing and me and things I like and things I've done. During this they told me about them, their friends, their family, activities they do, things they like, and often random unrelated stories. :o)

When the show and tell started it got even funnier. I decided to first show them my collection of medals. I brought several medals from my collection that I thought were the prettiest or most interesting. I started passing them around the room for everyone to look at. The funny questions started.

Wow! Did you get these because you won?

Have you won any marathons?

Oh wow! Is this one real gold?

Hey this one is my birthday! This has my birthday on it! Look!

I like this one best! It says San Francisco! I used to live in San Francisco!

How come a bunch of these say Rock N Roll?

Some of My Race Medals

The Medal Everyone Thought Was Real Gold

One of the Favorites - The Iron Girl Medal
(Girls only race with a mother/daughter race option)

So after I passed around the medals I also passed around my race scrapbook, aka a binder with all of my race numbers and race pictures. They flipped through that and I giggled a bit when one girl warned the next as she passed it along "Its REALLY long!" I lost count of how many races I've run, but since my first race in 2002 I've done dozens of races. 5ks, 10ks, 6 half marathons, 10 full marathons, and a number of odd-lengthed races in between.

"Scrapbook" of Race Numbers & Pictures

I also brought a race picture that wasn't a real road race, but I thought the girls would like it. It was a picture from a dog walk that my friend Jenna and I had done. It was a 5K walk that we had to turn into a 1 mile walk because both of our unsocialized dogs were freaking out the whole time. Yes, my little 8lb Pekepoo Kona and Jenna's Pitbull Mix Bailey were both scared. Poor dogs. The girls loved this picture! As they passed this around they all shared stories about their dogs and other pets.

Dog Walk with Jenna

The next thing I talked about and passed around was my race fuel. I showed them the water belt I wear and then held up the packets of Gu and bags of Cliff Shot Bloks that I eat during a race. To my surprised, several girls immediately asked "Can we try it?!" What? Eww! I was taken back a bit and said Sure! Here you go! So I passed a chocolate Gu one way, a vanilla Gu another way, and then opened up the back of Bloks to pass those out as well. The girls loved the Gu and Bloks. eww! I mean they don't taste horrible but they taste worse to me than normal food! They're a necessity, not something I enjoy.

Chocolate Gu Energy Gel

Cliff Shot Bloks - Energy Gummies

After they finished off the Gu and Bloks and washed their hands, I then passed around my newspaper cover from when I was featured in the Living section of the Arizona Republic a few years ago. One girl immediately raised her hand and told me about how she had made it into the newspaper for her soccer team winning a competition. I asked her if she had saved the newspaper. She said no. I laughed and said that she should have! I went out and bought around 10 copies of my newspaper debut! I even sent copies out to several people in my family!

My Newspaper Debut

I had also brought my Foot Locker jersey, but hadn't passed that around yet because it didn't seem as interesting in comparison, but then the girl closest to me pointed to it and ask if I could pass that around too. They all liked looking at that too.

After talking about my running I also talked a bit about those close to me who have started running too, and who have run with me. I made sure to virtually embarrass my friend Kris by pointing out our race picture from a half marathon where we high-fived at each mile. At mile 10 we were caught on camera and he looks like a psycho killer while I laugh at him. HAHA.

Team HIGH FIVE!

I also told them about how David and I ran my last half marathon together and how we'll be running a full marathon together in October. I told them that we were tracking our training progress online so we could see who had run more so far, and as of today, I was winning! They loved that. One girl then told me that she was the only girl in her class to run a mile at her school track meet. Another girl told me how she can run faster than the fastest boy in her class. So cute, melted my heart.

So after a full hour of talking and answering questions and listening to stories and passing stuff around, it was time for the girls to have their snack break and for me to head back to work. I wish I could have stayed all day! The girl in charge walked me out and thanked me. I thanked her more in return. Being with those girls and seeing their excitement and energy and inquisitive nature was a pure joy. I suddenly realized how much fun and how rewarding it must be for people who work with kids. I thought back to my job and everyday life at work, and realized how totally different things were in comparison. I really love my job and what I do, but on a daily basis its a bit tense and people get stressed and down and angry and frustrated. Never at work have I seen the pure happiness that I saw with these kids. It was such a blessing to get to spend this time wtih them and I went back to work with the hugest smile.

I hope these girls enjoyed the visit half as much as I do. I'm so grateful for having been able to share the experience with them.