EDINBORO, Pa. – Over the past two months, the Edinboro Track & Field and Cross Country teams volunteered with the McKean Elementary School's Run Club held on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. The Run Club is an after school program that is free to all students.

"The kids enjoy the athlete mentors working with them and look up to them," Lisa Roberts, McKean Elementary School teacher and Run Club coordinator said. "They so enjoy when they visit."

"I volunteered at Run Club because I thought it would be a fun experience to work with kids," Stefanie Parsons, a freshman on the Track & Field and Cross Country teams said. "Hopefully we can inspire them to be active and maybe run track or cross country in the future."

The conclusion of Run Club was this past Saturday during the Al Hall Freedom Games at the Mike S. Zafirovski Sports and Recreation Dome. At the meet, students participated in either the 800-meter run or the 1-mile race.

"Our kids really love Run Club because it is the only activity at the school that blends the levels," Roberts said. "So many get to be with their neighborhood friends and siblings, it's much different from any other program that we have." 

More than 110 students ranging from kindergarten to 4th grade participated in Run Club this year. In addition, almost 80 students, along with their families, competed in one of the two events over the weekend.

"I feel this is a great program to open up or kids to new experiences and let them know what type of positive actives are available to them once they reach high school and college," Roberts said. "They really enjoy enjoyed watching all the other events at the track meet and were talking about it all day (Saturday). I think many enjoy the competitive aspect and many just love being active and social with their friends, that's a big plus."