Moms on the Run

Rosa Parks, called the "mother of the civil rights movement," is best known for refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white man in Montgomery, Alabama in 1955, sparking the Montgomery bus boycott. But Parks was a lifelong activist who had been challenging white supremacy long before then. She stated, "I had been pushed around all my life and felt at this moment that I couldn’t take it any more."

One of the most famous Americans in history, Harriet Tubman escaped slavery in 1849 and personally helped free 70 enslaved people — and aid hundreds more — as the most-well known “conductor” of the Underground Railroad. She was often referred to as the "Moses of her people."

​While Tubman did not create the Underground Railroad, she most likely used this network of escape routes and safe houses when she and her brothers escaped north. Tubman returned to the South many times to help lead others to freedom. Her success led slaveowners to post a $40,000 reward for her capture or death, however, she was never caught and never lost a "passenger."

This past weekend, all Moms on the Run locations across the country planned to gather in one place — on the turquoise beaches of Clearwater, FL, for Run Clearwater. While the pandemic made that impossible, our substitute virtual run retreat — Beach Break Weekend — was undoubtedly a successful time of 'Fitness, Fun and Friendship.' 

We kicked off the weekend together online with Beach Running Bingo, lots of prizes and movie night featuring the documentary "Spirit of the Marathon," which chronicles the journey of six runners as they train for the Chicago Marathon. (We all agreed if you didn't have running a marathon as a goal, watching that will certainly make you want to do one!)

Saturday featured a day of awesome activities! We started with a warm-up and fun run via the Charge app, with Coaches Carrie Tollefson and Amy Magdalein in our ears talking us through a 40-min run or walk. You could watch how far your fellow runners ran and participate in a live chat via the app. Coach Carrie then led us through a boot camp and cool down.