Because of dedicated advocates like you, Spring 2023, was our Biggest Season Ever!
880+ Program Participants
59 Teams
661 Running Buddies
307 Community Participants
It was just over 2 months ago that we gathered at De Anza Cove for our biggest 5K celebration yet! What an incredible morning and well-deserved accomplishment for our amazing program participants. Star power energy awards go to our tremendous 5K committee and volunteers who worked tirelessly to pull together our biggest event in GOTRSD history. A special shout out to our 5K Manager Lauren Kirlin for leading the charge with this spectacular event! We are already making plans for the Spring 24 5K. if you are interested in joining our 5K committee, please contact Natasia de Silva at natasia@gotrsd.org.
Introducing Our New Executive Director, Natasia de Silva
Natasia joined our team in June and is already making a tremendous impact. Her core values of equity and inclusion have guided her throughout her career, and she was drawn to Girls on the Run because of the unmistakable impact and transformative power our programs have on our participants, their loved ones, and surrounding community.
Prior to joining GOTRSD, Natasia worked for a decade to maintain safe, affordable housing for low-income New Yorkers, first as Deputy Director of the Tenants Rights Coalition in the Bronx office of Legal Services NYC, and then as Assistant Counsel for Housing to New York State Governor Kathy Hochul. In these roles, she worked closely with community partners, government agencies, and other organizations and service providers to collaboratively find solutions.
Outside of work, Natasia is a dedicated mentor to law students and undergraduates who identify as Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. In her spare time, she enjoys cooking, doing yoga, playing board games, and listening to podcasts.
Please introduce yourself and give a big GOTRSD welcome to Natasia at natasia@gotrsd.org!
Taking Time To Rest This Fall!
As we start this new chapter for GOTRSD, our team has made the strategic and tough decision to not hold a Fall 2023 season. We have all experienced tremendous growth, as well as transition, over the last several years. This is the right time to stop and reassess where we are today, so that we can grow stronger together tomorrow.
What This Means
While we won’t be having our typical programming, we’ll be taking the time to review every aspect of GOTRSD and ensure that our core values and IDEA (inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility) principles are represented in all we do. Over the next several months, the team will examine our policies and procedures to deeply weave in those core principles, take time to build stronger connections with our school and community partners, and develop new ways to best serve our participants.
We will be back, and better than ever, for our Spring 2024 season–and we hope you’ll be part of it! In the meantime, you can stay connected with us on social media, and we’ll share regular email updates about what we’re working on and how you can provide feedback to help us grow and evolve.
We are grateful for your participation and ongoing support, and we can’t wait to share what’s next! We look forward to expanding our program in the coming year to serve more participants like Miranda, a program participant at San Marcos Elementary who offered the beautiful words below of gratitude and inspiration.
"Dear GOTRSD, Thank you for the opportunity to join Girls on the Run. My favorite thing about Girls on the Run was communicating with others. Also, I've been more brave than I was before. I'm so glad that I joined GOTR. I was so glad when we did the 5K. THANK YOU!" - Miranda