This Keeps Me Sane
Mary Middleton
CAMDEN AREA CO-FOUNDER OF GIRLS ON THE RUN………….INTERVIEW BY LIZA GARDNER WALSH
HOW DID YOU FIND THIS ACTIVITY?
Girls on the Run is a nationwide program that I had heard about when I lived in Charleston and it continued to pique my interest. When we moved to Camden, I started to think about it more to help our older daughter make some connections. There wasn’t a group in the area but I reached out to Girls on the Run Maine and they put me in touch with my now very good friend and fellow coach, Caroline Moore. We met and then immediately we were able to get something going through the PenBay YMCA.
HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN DOING THIS ACTIVITY?
We started the Camden Girls on the Run about 7 years ago.
WHAT DOES IT FULFILL FOR YOU?
The girls were just fantastic to work with and so incredibly positive. They are looking up to us as coaches but we learn so much from them. Watching a kid who is presented with a challenge, for example; seeing negative self-talk and facing it, makes you look at it in yourself. All the challenges we do with the girls allow me to slow down and look at myself and be the best I can because these kids are looking at me to be an example. Seeing how kids look at the world with fresh eyes with such a genuine perspective is so refreshing. The program is truly transformative. Kids will process all of these big and hard things they are going through while they are running. It allows them to release so much and to work together to meet their goals. At the end of the program, the girls all compete in a 5K with their families. Seeing them reach that milestone and the camaraderie that is achieved at that final 5K is so mind blowing. Everyone gets swept up in the energy.
HOW DOES THIS KEEP YOU SANE?
Running has always brought me so much joy but working with these kids reminds me that it doesn’t have to be a race. Just getting out there with friends and meeting yourself where you are and seeing new places is really the point. And then feeling how relaxed you are at the end. Working with these girls is the ultimate reminder for me to just get out there and go. When I work with these girls, I always ask myself who is really inspiring whom. They are the ones that inspire me and I remember the lessons they show me everyday.
FMI ON GIRLS ON THE RUN: CAROLINE MOORE | MIDCOAST AND DOWNEAST REGIONAL COORDINATOR, CAROLINE.MOORE@GIRLSONTHERUN.ORG ANNE MERKEL | PROGRAM MANAGER, ANNE.MERKEL@ GIRLSONTHERUN.ORG
