Last fall, a group of Mt. Lebanon girls successfully completed a Girls on the Run (GOTR) season.

Founded in 1996, GOTR is an international nonprofit organization for girls in grades 3-5 that promotes empowerment through physical activity and life skills development. GOTR Coach Jessica Kunkler said, “I love that it teaches girls to love running and to process thoughts and feelings while moving with friends.”

Here’s how it works: A local affiliate councils of GOTR organize teams in their area (the council for Allegheny County is Magee-Women’s Hospital of UPMC). Once a team registers, the council provides training for volunteer coaches. The coaches then lead participants through 10 weeks of practicing two days a week using the program’s curriculum. The 90-minute practices feature both physical activity and time for team-building exercises and conversation.

Each practice has a built-in lesson topic that provides a framework for the day. For example, past topics have been “I Can!” and “Hello, Superstar!” The coaches introduce the topic, and then the girls do a theme-based warm-up. In one warm-up, the girls stood on a shower curtain and worked together to flip it over without letting their feet touch the grass. “In this case, the task wasn’t necessarily meant to be completed, but to demonstrate how important it is to work together and keep your cool,” explained Kunkler.

The team then runs laps, during which the girls do an activity associated with the day’s theme. At the end, they record laps in their GOTR journal and complete a cool-down and final processing activity.

Liz Downs, whose daughter Ellie is a third grader at Lincoln Elementary, said, “I loved hearing Ellie tell me how many laps she ran and how those laps increased each week. I could see her confidence building week by week.”

The season culminated in a 5K run and each participant received a commemorative medal.

GOTR is not just for runners. The goal is to get girls moving forward, by whatever means they choose. Charlotte Lepore, a fourth grader at Washington Elementary School, said her favorite thing about GOTR was that they all got to go their own different speeds. “It’s not a race; you just go at the speed you want,” she said. “Walking, running, skipping, anything! And that’s how life works; you can go any speed you want!”

In 2025, the Mt. Lebanon team consisted of 17 girls, and they ran the 5K at North Park. The team’s coaches were Jessica Kunkler, Andrea Babb, Laura LaFlair and Junior Coach Allison Hodgson. Practices took place at Mt. Lebanon Park, a central location that drew participants from all over Mt. Lebanon.

Individual registration for a season of GOTR is $200 which includes the registration fee for the 5K. It also includes a healthy snack for each session, a GOTR T-shirt and an end-of-season celebration. Registration can be adjusted based on household income, and further financial support is available if needed. Also, girls from outside Mt. Lebanon can join the team!

For more information about GOTR, visit www.gotrmagee.org. For info about joining a Mt. Lebanon team in 2026, contact Linda Maus at mauslm@upmc.edu.