When St. Joseph resident Tammy Bowman signed up to coach a Girls On The Run team at EP Clark Elementary School in St. Joseph, she thought she would just be encouraging pre-teen girls to get active and build their self-esteem. She didn’t know the program would encourage her to complete a marathon to raise money to keep the program going.

Tammy Bowman will run the Chicago Marathon this fall and is collecting pledges to support Girls on the Run of Berrien County. The Girls on the Run program was brought to Berrien County by United Way of Southwest Michigan as part of its efforts to support health programs.

“My journey with Girls on the Run began in the spring as a coach,” Bowman said. “Coaching gave me the opportunity to wrap up the gift of running and share it with the girls of Berrien County. The running aspect is a powerful tool that gave the girls physical power and completing a 5K at the end of the program gave them a great sense of accomplishment.”

Girls on the Run completed its first year in Berrien County schools in the spring. Over 225 girls in schools throughout the county participated in the program that culminates in a 5K community run. Girls on the Run is a national experiential learning program for girls in grades 3 through 5. Although its perceived goal is completion of a noncompetitive 5K walk/run, in fact GOTR is as much about good health, friendship, positive body image and self-esteem as it is about running. It was designed to help 8- to 11-year-old girls before they encounter what Molly Barker, the founder of GOTR, calls the “girl box”—that place where society, peers, even parents inadvertently direct so many girls, a place where they think they are judged on a superficial level only.

“The GOTR curriculum coincides with the physical workouts to give the girls a sense of identity,” Bowman said. “They become confident in their hopes and dreams and learn that it is OK to be unique and not fit in "the girl box." Girls learn to celebrate themselves the way they are!”

To help support Bowman and the Girls on the Run program visit her site at

http://www.active.com/donate/teamtiara2009/TBowman18.

About United Way United Way is a global network that advances the common good, creating opportunities for a better life for all by focusing on the three key building blocks of education, income and health. The United Way movement creates long lasting community change by addressing the underlying causes of problems that prevent progress in these areas. LIVE UNITED is a call to action for everyone to become a part of the change. For more information about United Way, please visit www.uwsm.org or www.liveunited.org.

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