Morningside Milers Club

At our after school program at Morningside Middle one of my teachers recently did the most amazing class. He pulled together a group of students with potential and desire to be runners and created a run club. They trained for 4 weeks and their goal was to run the Seminary stride 5k on April 25th. Some incentives for the kids were a brand new pair of custom fitted running shoes, a nights stay in a hotel and a celebration dinner.
We found teachers and friends to donate money to buy each kid a brand new pair of shoes and each kid got to go to Luke's Locker and get fitted for shoes that worked for them.














The night before their race they got to stay in a hotel and hang out. They were so well behaved. All of us were so proud of them.













All of the team members finished the race and 2 of them even won trophies in their age division. They were the highlight of the race. Everyone there cheered them on each time one crossed the finish line. Below is a picture of the 2 students who received trophies. To the left is Ellisiah. He finished in 25 minutes and placed 2nd in his division. And to the right is Tayana. She finished 2nd in her age division.

We also had a lot of parents and families come and cheer on their students as they crossed the finish line. It was very moving to watch them. Below is Tayana with her grandmother, aunt and brother.

This final picture is of the entire team. I have been here for 3 years in this job and this is by far the most amazing thing we have done. These kids may not have a lot, but they have a lot to give if someone taps into their potential and gives them a chance.