WEST RIDGE — Twelve girls in the third through fifth grades at Boone Elementary School in West Ridge smiled brightly as they received new pairs of running shoes Tuesday afternoon — shoes that will help carry them through their first ever 5K run.
Supplied by a group of area McDonald's owners and operators, Boone is one of 350 sites across the state chosen to support the Girls on the Run 10-week afterschool program, a nonprofit organization that uses "the power of running to inspire ... girls for a lifetime of self-respect and healthy living."
Kris Smart, the Chicago branch executive director for the running organization, said more than half of the program's participants come from low-income areas where footwear isn't always affordable.
A dozen girls got their new pairs of bubblegum pink and baby blue Champion sneakers through the organization's partnership with local McDonald's locations, a move that will transform many "sore toes" into "happy feet," Smart said.
But Girls on the Run is much more than just physical exercise, Smart said, it's a "girl empowerment program."
The organization exists primarily to provide girls the social and emotional support they need to succeed during critical growing years. The program at Boone is run by teachers who volunteer their time after class.
The more that girls in grades three through five learn to understand their worth, stand up for themselves and others and come to appreciate their personal strengths, the more likely they are to raise their hand and participate in the classroom later in their schooling, Smart said.
"We teach the girls that if you build yourself, then you build your team, then you build your community," Smart said.
Madison Johnson, an 8-year-old third-grader at Boone, said she liked her new shoes — something that will come in handy as she is "probably" one of the fastest on the team, she said.
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