In 2010, Girls on the Run Michiana co-founders Amy Collier and Kris Ohlson approached Saint Mary's Cross Country Coach Jackie Bauters with an invitation to get involved in the launch of Girls on the Run locally. Jackie was all in! The three women attended training in Charlotte, North Carolina and began the work of bringing Girls on the Run to the community. Jackie had a passion for the mission of Girls on the Run and became part of the founding board of directors. Through her networking and advocacy, she helped establish partnerships that have had a significant impact on the organization over the years.
"It was kinda easy because they were all things I really believe in," Jackie said. "It was great to give back and to see something come to our community that was a first of its kind."
ABOVE: Jackie poses with two GOTR participants at practice in 2011.
Jackie became the council's first "SoleMate," raising scholarship funds for local girls while setting and meeting her own athletic goals. She actively promoted the SoleMates program, raising thousands of dollars to ensure no girl would be turned away due to inability to pay the sliding scale registration fee.
Jackie, Kris, and Amy coached the first GOTR Michiana team of 12 brave girls at Swanson Primary in 2011. Jackie planned out the culminating 5K course on Saint Mary's College campus. Although a tornado warning forced the event to move indoors to the Angela Athletic Center, it was an unforgettable and successful event. Jackie again volunteered as a Girls on the Run in 2022 when her older daughter was finally old enough to participate. By that time, the program had grown and changed in significant ways.
"It was so efficient, so organized. Everything had settled into a well-oiled machine," Jackie said.
Jackie added that coaching her daughter was really rewarding because she could "hear the stuff she's learning in real time.
"It helped me learn about her peers and their friendships and how they relate, and you see which girls really need the program's message," Jackie added. Jackie is again coaching this year, as her younger daughter is now a Girl on the Run.
ABOVE: Jackie with her 2022 GOTR team after participating in the 5K.
Girls on the Run is more than just running, it's about connecting with young girls and instilling them with confidence, but Jackie shares that she appreciates that running is a vehicle within the program because running is not easy.
"I love to tell them you can do hard things," she said. "If you cross that finish line, you did something really hard, and that gives them permission to do more hard things. That's the GOTR mission - to stretch yourself, to go for hard things, and that's where the growth happens."
As a founding coach, Jackie Bauters has been connected with Girls on the Run Michiana for the past 15 years. She is the Head Cross Country Coach at Saint Mary's College and resides in Granger with her husband and 2 daughters.