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On Wednesday, June 14, 2023, Girls on the Run Bayou Region said farewell to two of their founding members, Ellen Doskey and Laura Ramirez, following over ten years of service to the community. Doskey and Ramirez shared their best memories of their time with Girls on the Run with The Times of Houma/Thibodaux.
“We started off very small, but we have grown so much. The growth in the past twelve years has been tremendous to see,” said Doskey. “But to continue to grow, and how to accommodate our numbers is always our biggest challenge. We want to include as many girls as possible without compromising the quality of our program, especially with big obstacles like COVID-19 and Hurricane Ida. Now that those issues are somewhat in the past, I feel like I am ready to step down from my position. We have established a great board that is going to continue to carry on our mission.” Doskey explained that although she is stepping down from her board position with Girls on the Run, she plans to continue assisting the community and creating empowerment programs for people to benefit from.
“Just getting this program started for our girls and giving them good memories has been the best thing about this journey,” said Ramirez. “We have really been able to instill confidence and self esteem in a lot of local girls which has been very rewarding– my two daughters included!” chuckled Ramirez. “Seeing the girls cross that finish line at our Reindeer Run always, no matter how many times I have seen it, brings tears to my eyes. It is so sweet to see people who may have never run a 5k in their lives achieve that. It’s quite amazing.” Ramirez said that despite leaving her formal position on the board, she and Doskey are excited to come back to Girls on the Run events as much as possible as volunteers. “We are just not ready to give up all those fun events yet!” said Ramirez.
Thank you to Doskey and Ramirez for their remarkable work in helping to bring Girls on the Run to the Bayou region. For more information about Girls on the Run Bayou Region and what they do for the local community, please visit their Facebook or website.
