On Tuesday, December 2nd, 2025, Girls on the Run supporters gathered for an evening at Parker's Table to hear more about the program firsthand and how to support access for girls in the St. Louis region.
Sarah Bailey, coach at Pershing Elementary School in the School District of University City, shared about her own experiences at GOTR and the impact it has made on her students and her community at Pershing Elementary. She has graciously granted us permission to share her full speech below.
Why Girls on the Run?
The girls matter to me. When I started coaching, I was teaching lower elementary so it gave me an opportunity to interact with the upper elementary students, some of who I had when they were younger. Now that I’m the librarian, and I see the whole school, I get to interact with the girls on the team in a different setting and capacity. It allows for completely different conversations and our GOTR lessons can always be applied during the school day. I love being able to be goofy with the girls and have those inside jokes and laughs.
Every season, I feel like I learn as much as the girls do. I always think “man I wish this was available when I was in elementary school.” One of my favorite parts of the season is seeing the fourth and fifth grade girls who have done the program before, take a third grader under their wing, encourage them when they are getting discouraged, and see new friendships blossom.
This past season we had a junior coach for the first time and watching her step into that leadership role was amazing. Without the adjusted fees and scholarships, I know so many of the girls I’ve coached over the years would not have been able to participate in the program and it means the world to me that the cost of the program is never a reason a girl can’t participate in GOTR.
So why support GOTR?
GOTR is unique because it builds confidence, leadership, teamwork, and social-emotional wellbeing through a program that is research-based and accessible to all families.
Do it for my junior coach who used the skills she learned in her three seasons to step outside her comfort zone and get involved with the school play her first year in middle school.
Do it for my fifth grader who learned that she liked running and wants to run track in middle school. She told me that GOTR helped her build stronger friendships, problem solve issues, and communicate better with her with her classmates and teachers.
Do it for my third grader who was the absolute last girl to finish the 5K last month but couldn’t stop smiling at school Monday when anyone asked her about her medal or mentioned Girls on the Run. She also asked me when we were doing it all again.
GOTR makes an impact on every girl, every season. They take the skills they learn on with them to middle school and beyond.