The Donegan Dashers is a new running team at Donegan Elementary in Bethlehem.
Every practice, 25 girls on the team hear their teachers and coaches cheering them on.
"I used to think about sad things that happened to me, but then I realized I shouldn't be thinking about those things," Donegan Dasher Melany Gil said. "I realized I should be thinking about what I would like to be when I grow up."
It is a group that's doing a lot more than teaching girls in 3rd 4th and 5th grade the fundamentals of the sport.
"I think that I can do anything," Donegan Dasher, Kendal Cheatum said.
Donegan Elementary School Principal, Sonia Vazquez, saw a need in her school to empower young girls through an athletic outlet.
"I knew if we found a passion for them, something would take," Vazquez said. "Whether it was letting the energy go, or just being part of a group."
She chose accomplished marathon runner and teacher Kathy West to lead the charge, taking the girls from recreational joggers to athletes training for an upcoming 5K.
"She has transformed these girls," Vazquez said. "It is not just the running, it is their entire lives."
Teachers, coaches and students alike have taken note of that transformation.
"We feel independent we feel strong now," Donegan Dasher, Melony Nonnemacher said.
"It makes me feel different than everybody else," Donegan Dasher Aiyana Rivera said. "I am proud to be a Dasher."
West dreams will continue to grow in the years ahead. And with the results she's seen so far, it doesn't seem like keeping the volunteer program running will be too much of a hurdle.
from 69News:Home http://ift.tt/1EHITsE
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