Girls on the Run show their strength at the Florham Park Jaycees 5K

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FLORHAM PARK, NJ — More than 600 Girls on the Run of New Jersey East participants will run in the Florham Park Jaycees 5K, held at 9 A.M. this Saturday, June 11, at the Holy Family Church in Florham Park. Race proceeds will aid the Jaycees Scholarship Fund benefitting local students, the Billy and Ashley Streiter Memorial Fund, and Girls on the Run NJ East. To learn more about this event, which is open to the community, visit http://www.fpjaycees.net/5krace.html.

Girls on the Run is a physical-activity-based youth development program for girls in grades three through eight. One team runs out of West Orange’s Redwood School and another out of the South Mountain Reservation. During the season, girls participate in lessons designed to foster their confidence, help them build connections with their peers and encourage meaningful contribution to their community through service. Running is used as a tool throughout the program to reinforce lesson topics as well as encourage healthy living.

“The 5K is where all the magic happens; girls who have been working so hard to prepare for this event come together and celebrate all the best parts of what we practice at our sessions ‘having FUN, being ourselves, and trying our best,’” Executive Director Sydney Davis said in a press release. “There is such joy and satisfaction for everyone who is a part of their huge accomplishment; crossing the finish line with smiles and tears that all say ‘I did it!’”