100 Women Who Care Elkhart County supports girls on the run Michiana with a $10,000 gift
A $10,000 gift will help young girls who want to participate in Girls on the Run Michiana get the chance.
At its quarterly gathering in July, 100 Women Who Care Elkhart County picked the physical activity-based positive youth development program for girls in 3rd through 5th grade as the recipient of a grant.
Since the summer of 2014, women have gathered every three months to learn more about their community and to support it through generosity. The program has given $190,000 since its inception and is administratively supported by the Community Foundation of Elkhart County.
At each gathering, women donate $100 and hear presentations on three suggested charities before voting on which one will receive the $10,000 gift. At the most recent event, Jenny Miller suggested Girls on the Run Michiana after hearing how the program helped Angelina Marte, the daughter of her coworker Ashley Marte. “It’s a great program for young girls,” said Miller. Ashley Marte added that the program helped her daughter this year and inspired them to run a 5K together.
Girls on the Run programming encourages young girls to develop their confidence, learn about building healthy relationships and participate in a community service project while becoming physically and emotionally prepared to complete a celebratory 5K. The registration fee is $160 and it costs the agency about $250per participant for the school-based program. However, Girls on the Run never turns a girl away due to inability to pay the registration fee and Girls on the Run provided over $70,000 in scholarship last year. This is why scholarship dollars are so critical to the program.
Council Director Amy Cooper Collier shares, "We are so grateful for this gift that will allow Girls on the Run to inspire more girls to be joyful, healthy and confident through participation in Girls on the Run. It will certainly make a difference in our community as we'll be providing over $80,000 in scholarship to girls in the program this upcoming spring. We are incredibly grateful to the 100 Women Who Care!"
Girls on the Run Michiana will impact the lives of nearly 1,000 girls in the Michiana area this upcoming season and has had around 3,200 participants since it began in the area eight years ago. This last year, it had 56 teams involving 890 girls in Elkhart, Fulton and St. Joseph counties.
Through the help of generous contributors like 100 Women Who Care Elkhart and individual donors, scholarships are provided to 63 percent of program participants. With the help of 100 Women Who Care Elkhart, Girls on the Run Michiana looks forward to continuing to grow and inspire more girls to be joyful, healthy and confident.
About Girls on the Run
Girls on the Run is a national physical activity-based positive youth development program for 3rd to 5th grade girls. Participants develop and improve competence, feel confidence in who they are, develop strength of character, respond to others and oneself with care, create positive connections with peers and adults and make a meaningful contribution to community and society. Each session is led by trained volunteer coaches that guide and mentor the girls. The ten-week program concludes with all participants completing a celebratory 5K event which gives them a tangible sense of achievement as well as a framework for setting and achieving life goals. Since 1996, Girls on the Run has delivered its intentional curriculum to 1.4 million girls (and counting!) across all 50 states.
Girls on the Run needs volunteers for its programs in Elkhart County. The adults don’t have to be runners and simply need to be willing to make a time commitment to help the girls. In addition, Girls on the Run Michiana is planning to expand into Marshall and Kosciusko counties.
About 100 Women Who Care Elkhart County
In the summer of 2014, Jenny Welch and Sheila Terlep organized the 100 Women Who Care Elkhart County chapter, a gathering of local women who care deeply about Elkhart County and give generously to see their communities thrive. Throughout the last four years more than 200 women have given to the Elkhart County chapter to support local causes. The group has awarded more than $190,000 to local organizations serving Elkhart County residents.
The 100 Women Who Care is a component fund of the Community Foundation of Elkhart County. The Community Foundation partners with donors to leverage their philanthropy in ways that transform lives. Since 1989, the Community Foundation has connected the generosity of donors with community needs by providing scholarship opportunities to local students and making grants to nonprofit organizations working to improve the quality of life in Elkhart County.
100 Women Who Care Elkhart County, www.100WomenWhoCareElkhart.com
Community Foundation of Elkhart County, www.InspiringGood.org