Girls on the Run Endowment Fund
Girls today face significant social pressures and conflicting messages about how they should behave and who they should aspire to be. Studies show that by adolescence, girls’ confidence drops at nearly twice the rate of boys’. Friendships often become more complicated, perceptions of academic ability decline, and the likelihood of anxiety and depression increases, while participation in physical activity falls dramatically.
It doesn’t have to be this way.
At Girls on the Run, we believe that EVERY GIRL is inherently FULL OF POWER and POTENTIAL. When girls recognize that they are the leaders of their own lives, they become the change-makers who WILL CHANGE THE WORLD.
GOTR stands out as the only national, physical activity-based positive youth development program specifically for girls, supported by compelling evidence of its impact. A recent independent study revealed that our program is highly effective in driving transformative and lasting change in the lives of third to fifth-grade girls. In fact, 97% of participants reported learning critical life skills, including conflict resolution, helping others, managing emotions, and intentional decision-making. We are proud to know that we are changing lives for every girl who participates.
Each year, we serve over 2,000 girls with the guidance of 600 dedicated trained volunteer coaches, who mentor them through the journey of completing a 5K. Our culturally responsive framework ensures that our programs are inclusive and reflective of our participants’ diverse backgrounds, creating a nurturing environment where girls can connect lessons to their lives and share what matters most to them
Since inception in 2009, Girls On the Run has provided over $1.6 million in financial aid to girls from low- to moderately low-income families. Our initiative operates on a sliding-scale registration fee structure, allowing families to contribute based on their household income, ensuring affordability and accessibility for all.
Through the Girls on the Run Legacy of Empowerment Campaign, we seek to enhance program capacity with a high priority on financial assistance. Our goal is to grow the endowment to $1.3M, which would allow us to draw $50,000 annually to support our program and related activities. The endowment will continue to provide support to Girls on the Run and our participants, forever.
Ways to Give
Multiple gift types are accepted into the Girls on the Run Endowment including: cash/check, credit cards, publicly-traded and closely held securities, retirement funds, trust beneficiary, life insurance, charitable gift annuity program, and bequests.
Donate Online
Donate securely online through credit or debit card.
Donate a Non-Cash Asset
Donations of stock and retirement funds can be easily made by reaching out to Finance at the Lancaster County Community Foundation.
Donate through a Bequest
Gifts through bequests or naming the endowment as an additional beneficiary can be made. Click link for bequest language or contact Forever Lancaster Director, Ashlinn Masland-Sarani for more information.
Open a Charitable Gift Annuity
Partnership with the Lancaster County Community Foundation allows us to offer Charitable Gift Annuities to benefit the Girls on the Run endowment.
Peter and Jennifer West (co-founder, current Executive Director) created this endowment to honor the legacy of Jennifer’s stepmother, Ellen McCabe. Ellen’s unwavering dedication to the mission of Girls on the Run was instrumental. Her deep belief in the goodness of every individual, along with her steadfast commitment to empowering girls shaped the organization’s growth and inspired countless lives. We take great pride in continuing her work through Girls on the Run. In the spirit of Ellen’s “pay it forward” philosophy, we invite you to join us in leaving a lasting legacy of empowerment.
Together, we can impact the next generation of female leaders.
