There is something different about the students who attend Geneva College; the campus is full of students who are ready and willing to serve the community around them.
The Geneva Women’s Cross Country team is a case in point. For a normal student-athlete, a typical Wednesday would be filled with studying, classes, and maybe practice, but the cross-country team wanted to go above and beyond with their community engagement.
On October 26, the runners teamed up with New Brighton Elementary School and got to know the girls who are part of the Girls on the Run program.
The Girls on the Run program has a simple mission “We inspire girls to be joyful, healthy and confident using a fun, experience-based curriculum which creatively integrates running.”
Twice a week, girls who participate in the program get together in small teams with certified Girls on the Run coaches and gain skills in leadership and teamwork. The program is focused on showing young girls how staying active through running can change their lives for the better, empowering them to take charge in their lives so they can make a positive impact on others around them.
The women on the cross country team are continuing to spend afternoons with these girls, helping them train for a 5k race in Pittsburgh in December. Each cross-country runner is paired with one of the younger girls to run the race.
“The girls love running with us and we are overjoyed to spend our afternoon with them. They are full of energy and are a good reminder to us about the power running has to bring together all different kinds of people for good,” says team captain Madelyn Blosser.
Blosser expresses how much of a blessing this opportunity has been for her as well as for the other athletes on the team. She is very excited about how God is working through them to show His goodness in acts of service and love.
The student-athletes who make up the Geneva Women’s Cross Country team are not your normal college student-athletes, but they are pretty typical for Geneva College. They are setting an example of how to encourage the best of the people around them, and they are happy and proud to do so.
© Geneva College | All rights reserved
