When people ask me how long I have been running I like to say, “Since I could walk,” which now adds up to 60+ years. Running has been my life companion. She taught me how to be in tune with my body during my awkward adolescent years; how to push myself and set goals beyond my wildest imagination in my teen years; how to cope with stress and life while working and raising a family. Running was right there with me during my marriage, divorce and happy re-marriage. She helped me through those times when I had losses that were deep and painful and she made me feel whole, alive and optimistic again.
My husband was offered a great opportunity to spend a year in Accra, Ghana (West Africa) as a coach for small businesses in the region through the Stanford Graduate School of Business. This opportunity for him produced a unique opportunity for me – take a leave of absence from my job at Stanford University and do…what? I knew I wanted to work with the community in Accra in some way but not knowing the people, the culture, the life that I will be living there it was hard to really wrap my head around how I would spend my year.
And then life took a little turn of luck or serendipity or whatever you want to call it. A few months ago a friend was having a fundraising event for an organization called Mini Mermaids Running Club (MMRC). MMRC was born in 2009 in Santa Cruz when the founder, Heidi Boynton, discovered a lack of after-school running clubs for girls at or below the poverty line. Heidi has created a unique character-driven, movement-focused curriculum for young girls (and boys) utilizing running, jogging and walking as a teaching method for self-efficacy. As luck would have it, Heidi was at the event and we got to talking and then I found out that her program has expanded to OTHER COUNTRIES. Light bulb. I immediately wondered aloud – could we do this in Ghana? I could combine my love of running and its benefits, kids, and life and bring something wonderful and empowering to young girls in Ghana that they would not otherwise have available to them?
So, Heidi and I talked and met, and the more I knew about her and the program the more I knew that I wanted to try to make this work in Ghana. I got in contact with another coach’s spouse who lived in Ghana a few years ago as I remembered she had helped a school, Noyaa (https://www.noyaaghana.org/) in the Jamestown area. This is one of the poorest areas of Accra and most of the children cannot afford to go to the regular public school (which costs very little but there is still a cost). Did she think this was feasible? Yes. Did she think the school that she helped might let me give this a go there? Yes. Would she put me in touch with the headmistress at the school? Yes!
I will be heading off to Ghana in September with the goal of implementing 5 six-week programs for elementary girls in Accra over the year. $1000 can support a class of 10 girls so I have set a goal of raising $5000. There will be no cost to the girls to participate and each will receive a journal for reflection, t-shirt, supplies for activities within the curriculum, race entry to a local 5k and finishers medal. In addition, I am asking for donations of used athletic/sneakers shoes (preferably size 3 – 7 but I will take anything as I am sure we can donate) and/or shorts or other exercise clothes for kids from about 2nd to 5th grade to take with me when we leave in September.
If you would like to have more information about the program please check out their wonderful website at https://www.minimermaidrunningclub.org/ or please feel free to contact me directly at [email protected].
No donation is too small or too large. Meda w’ase! (Twi, a local language, for thank you)
