Tuesday, May 25th marks another successful Girls on the Run 5k for the Ann Arbor community. Girls on the Run is a national non-profit organization that encourages girls from 3rd to 8th grade to be more confident and connected with other girls their age through running.  The club helps them work on reflecting on their personal lives, while increasing their physical activity and training for a 5K run.

I, Skyline senior Mayanna Dempsey, participated in the latest 5k with my younger sister, Nichole, who goes to Abbot elementary school. I had previously been a part of the program in Ypsilanti schools and enjoyed it immensely.

My sister and I, with my brother Kayden Dempsey tagging along, trudged along the way following the other runners. I jokingly berated them with my motivational speeches. 

“You know what it means to be last, right? You’re ok with being last?” 

“Look, those girls already have done 4 laps, we only have 2! I know you can do it, believe in yourself!” 

Together, we chanted “CAN’T STOP, WON’T STOP” as we continued our journey up and down the path. 

I was also having some personal reflection myself, struggling with inner turmoil: do I wait for my slower sister and keep encouraging her, or do I just run and leave her behind? I chose to be a good sibling and stick with her throughout as we watched my brother cheat by cutting the corners when turning on the path and leaving us. He even went to play at the park by himself in the middle of the 5k.

While we were the last to finish, we still got the biggest cheers when we reached the finish line.

For people interested in supporting or getting involved with Girls on the Run, check out their website:  https://www.girlsontherun.org/.