Girls on the Run of Snohomish County

GOTRSnoCo will benefit 900 girls with its empowering program in 2020 thanks to the generous support participants showed at the fourth annual Sneaker Soirée on Sept. 28.

The soirée raised $55,000 from the 200 participants.

“Because of our incredible supporters, we get the opportunity to empower more girls in our community to be their best selves and to make healthy decisions in their own lives,” said Megan Wolfe, GOTRSnoCo executive director. “I am extremely grateful for everyone who supports our mission to inspire girls to be healthy, joyful, and confident.”

GOTRSnoCo started in the Edmonds schools in 2015 with 40 girls in third through sixth grades. Community support grew quickly for the program that builds confident girls through a fun, experience-based curriculum that creatively integrates running. That support enabled GOTRSnoCo to reach 1,600 girls in its first four years and expand to 42 schools, including one private school, in seven school districts. The recent Sneaker Soirée gets GOTRSnoCo closer to their goal of registering 900 girls in third through eighth grades in the spring 2020 season. That’s an increase of 185 girls over the spring 2019 season.

GOTRSnoCo will be able to offer financial aid to 50 percent of the girls and keep its registration fee low while providing a high-quality program. The support also helps provide running shoes and running clothes for participating girls in need and offer sports hijabs to the girls who need them.

Girls on the Run is an international program that meets in Snohomish County after school for 10 weeks each spring. Trained volunteer adult coaches present girls with strategies and skills for navigating through life—particularly through their pre-teen and adolescent years—and demonstrate the value of teamwork, healthy relationships, and fitness. Girls discover through practice and games that good choices, healthy relationships, and positive activities make them feel good. Girls apply the lessons while running and finish the season with a 5K.

South County Fire teaches 23 students to help in a disaster

Twenty-three students recently completed Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training at South County Fire to learn how to help in a major disaster.

Erin Alexander, Joe Anstett, William Randy Baker, Eric Biermann, Michael Boehm, Robin Boyer, Clifford Corcoran, Christopher Downsing, Joel Fingeroot, Jasbir Kaur, Mark Kethlaor, Cheryl McLaughlin, Darrel McLaughlin, Michael LeMoine, Dawn Montemoino, James Muramoto, Leigh Olson, Tom Poe, William Salmon, Norm Seethoff, Grace Snyder, Eric Whitehead and Merle Wong successfully completed three full days of intensive training. Topics included disaster preparedness, extinguishing small fires, basic disaster first aid, medical triage and search and rescue operations. On the final day, students put what they learned to the test in a hands-on simulated disaster scenario at the South County Fire Training Tower.

South County Fire’s next CERT training will be offered in spring.

Christmas comes early for Christmas House

The Hazel Miller Foundation recently awarded a $5,000 operating grant to Christmas House.

The Hazel Miller Foundation is a private, nonprofit foundation dedicated to the citizens of Edmonds and South Snohomish County.

The foundation’s mission is to support programs and projects that serve the public’s benefit, especially in the areas of education and youth services, poverty alleviation and hunger, civic and community services and amenities, the environment, diversity, culture and the arts.

The Stillaguamish Tribe of Indians also recently awarded a $5,000 operating grant to Christmas House.

Christmas House, a nonprofit charity that was formed in 1981, provided free Christmas gifts to 7,200 children from 2,400 low-income families throughout Snohomish County last year.

Poets

Former Everett poets Abby and Hanna Wilson and Steve Wallace, donated streaming royalties from their poem “Little 500 Race” and a song they co-wrote with their aunt went to help Breast Cancer Awareness. All proceeds went to the charity. Their poem and the song are available online at www.soundclick.com/bands3/default.cfm?bandID=1387065.

Their new Poem “Figure 8 Racing Legend” is published in the book “We Are Beat: National Beat Poetry Foundation.” The proceeds also go to charity.

“We love writing and helping others and have have fun learning how to write from our good friend Steve Wallace, who is also a great songwriter,” Abby and Hanna said in a press release.

Correction: An earlier version misstated Eddie Goodridge’s role with the Stillaguamish Tribe. He is a former executive.