For girls participating in Sunday's inaugural New Balance Girls on the Run 5K at Sabino High School, the event was more than running three miles.
The girls in the fitness program received training for the past 10 weeks during the after-school program, which aims to boost participants' self-esteem and empower them to live healthier lifestyles, said Keli Perino, the coordinator of Girls on the Run of Tucson.
The early morning event was part of the Everyone Runs' TMC Fleet Feet Half Marathon and the Saguaro Physicians 5K & TMC for Children Fun Run, which began and ended on the school's track at 5000 N. Bowes Road.
Third- through fifth-grade girls from Peter Howell Elementary, Whitmore Elementary and John B. Wright Elementary schools started training for their run in September, Perino said.
They practiced twice a week for an hour-and-a-half. Each site has two coaches.
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The program also has some community support.
Aetna, the health insurance company, gave a $50,000 grant to start the program, Perino said.
"They were proud about themselves, amazed by their accomplishments," she said of the girls after the run.
Each girl had a "run buddy" - usually a family member or friend - who ran alongside them for the run, Perino said.
"Some of the parents were just as amazed to finish the run themselves as they were to see their daughters complete the run," she said.
For many of the girls, Perino said after the run, "It was like a light was lit from within."
Contact A.E. Araiza at 573-4155 or araiza@azstarnet.com
