St. Mary’s track club keeping a family stride

Many people do a variety of things for fun.

Some people fish, while others go camping, hunting or enjoy many of the other things south Louisiana has to offer.

But for a group of people in St. Mary Parish, their idea of fun is taking to the streets for a two-mile run.

Since 2006, the Tri-City Track Club has been running around the cities of Patterson, Berwick and Morgan City, helping to promote health and fitness among Tri-parish residents.

Laura Magann, the founder of the organization, said it’s a chance for the community to come together, have fun and stay in shape at the same time.

What started out as a group of five people running together has now become the area’s only running club.

“It was a group of us who got together informally to run in groups,” Magann said. “There were five of us that started out with our kids and then our husbands came aboard. It was good because right around that time I had a really good friend who became a state rep for the Roadrunners Club of America.”

“Everything really took off after that,” she added.

Now, three years later, the club has officially become a non-profit organization through the Roadrunners Club of America, which has a club established in New Orleans.

However, to those involved, the club is more than about running. It’s a chance for them to give back to the community and local children.

A recent request from the race director of the group, who is also a track coach at area schools, enticed the Tri-City Track Club to give back to those in need. Together, they developed the Trax for Stars program that gives shoes to children who can’t afford running shoes.

“She had kids that didn’t have shoes to wear to train or race in,” Magann said. “So she approached me and told me about it and I said I think we should do something. We developed a program to help these kids get shoes. I called Foot Speed (shoe store) in Bayou Vista and they wanted to come onboard with us by offering shoes at a discounted price.”

The only compensation the club asks from the children is volunteering for their sponsored races.

“We ask them to work our races because that’s our only means of fundraising besides sponsorship and we offer them shoes that way, Magann explained. “We ask the coaches to figure out which kids are needy.”

As for the club, it’s open to all age ranges and is not just structured for runners. In fact, she admitted the club is “pushing for walkers to come out.”

According to Magann, they try to ensure the children are equally involved as the adults.

Every year, the club holds a kids camp to allow children to join the program. This year’s Kids Camp is from July 7-9 and is sponsored by runningworld.com. It’s open to children from first grade through 13 years of age.

“We set up a program for them,” she said. “Every single person dealing with children said it had to be fun. We’re doing that again. We teach them how to run and stay in shape.”

To join the Tri-City Track Club, contact Magann at (985) 384-7076 or (985) 714-3278 or by email at lmagann4@yahoo.com.

Basic membership is $20 for individuals or $25 for a family. V.I.P. membership is $30 individual and $50 for a family with three months of certified coaching.

“The coaching is for those who might not have ever ran that much and want to move up from walking or to help those running to better themselves,” Magann said.

Two races remain in the summer series: one July 10, beginning at the Berwick Lighthouse and another Aug. 7 in Morgan City beginning at the Latin Corner.