Girls on the Run finish program, 5K

Girls on the Run took a detour this week and the end result was a feel-good finish for 30 young ladies who were able to complete a 5K in front of family and friends at Streeter Park in Aurora.
Originally scheduled to complete the 5K portion of the program Sunday in Lincoln with hundreds of other participants, that Girls on the Run plan was washed out by a series of weekend storms. 
Jamie Sands of rural Marquette, who is helping coordinate the Aurora chapter for the second year, said Plan B came together rather quickly and included 21 girls from Aurora and nine from Hampton.
“The overarching theme in the program is getting girls out there moving and then along with the actual physical activity part they couple that with just teaching girls how to be good teammates, good friends, to have high self esteem, good self confidence, those kinds of things,” Sands explained of an international nonprofit organization established in 1996. “Running and being active is part of the way that you attain that, so yeah, I think they do a nice job of really teaching girls how to be positive influences, good friends to each other and that kind of stuff.”
Sands said young girls and local volunteers meet twice a week for about 90 minutes each day, and then on Race Day they are joined by a run buddy.
“We practice with the girls for eight weeks so they are kind of building up to a 5K pace,” she said. “I think it’s really rewarding to finish with a run like this, so it would have been disappointing for them not to be able to do this.”
As for Plan B, Sands credited Aurora High School cross country coach Tony Sigler with the quick planning. Sigler, whose daughter was a participant this year, had a 5K route mapped out quickly based on his cross country experience, and at 5:30 Monday evening the race was on.
“I think the Aurora community does a good job of showing up so it was kind of a fun evening and we’re glad that we got to do this,” Sands said. 
According to the Girls on the Run website, the organization seeks to inspire participants of all abilities to recognize their individual strengths while building a sense of connection in a team setting. Volunteer coaches facilitate lessons that blend physical activity with life skill development to enable participants to adapt to whatever comes their way. At the end of the season, the team completes a 5K together, which provides a tangible sense of accomplishment and sets a confident mindset into motion. 
Since the organization was founded in 1996, more than 2.25 million girls have been involved in the program.