March 2011 Newsletter (pdf)

In It For The Long Run Volume 19

| Issue 2

March 2011

Mission Statement The mission of Students Run LA is to challenge at-risk secondar y students to experience the benefits of goal-setting, character development, adult mentoring and improved health by providing them with a truly life-changing experience: The training for and completion of the Honda LA Marathon.

On Your Marks! T

he 16th annual Friendship Run at Hansen Dam, presented by Rebecca and Richard Lewis, took place on February 6, 2011. This year’s event was put on with the support of Los Angeles City Council District 7, Councilmember Richard Alarcón and Costco Wholesale. The assistance of Councilmember Alarcón’s office staff was instrumental in the planning and success of the Friendship Run. Other sponsorships came from Merrill Lynch, Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy, NBC Universal, and Natixis Global Associates. A thank you also goes to the Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks for use of the park facilities, support from the park maintenance staff, and use of the aquatics facility parking area. A special thank you to Senior Park Ranger (Continued on page 6)

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From the Office Marsha

Rosny

Ginny

Nikki

Phyllis

W

e are counting down the days! The Honda LA Marathon is on Sunday, March 20th, and our students and their volunteer Leaders are ready for the challenge. The students have completed our annual 18-Mile Friendship Run and have earned their second pair of running shoes. (Thank you, again, Nike!)

SRLA’s long-term partners provided substantial grants including: American Honda Motor Co., Inc., has supported Students Run LA for fifteen years, including this year’s annual sponsorship of our students, via both monetary and in-kind donations. We particularly appreciate Honda’s pledge to provide our students with the annual photograph of the entire group on the morning of the Marathon.

The SRLA Friendship Run… …presented by Rebecca and Richard Lewis. The Lewis’ have been the presenting sponsors of the race for nine years. Their continuing support has been essential to the success of this event each year. Thank you also to our Board members for eliciting new sponsorships and support from:

Beyond The Bell in the Los Angeles Unified School District provides SRLA with an in-kind donation of bus transportation to the monthly community races in which our students participate, as well as monetary support.

•Merrill Lynch

The LA Marathon, as it has since the beginning, generously provides our students and their volunteer Leaders with complimentary entries to the Honda LA Marathon. This generous contribution from the LA Marathon is one of the cornerstones of the annual success of our program.

• Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy • NBC Universal • Natixis Global Associates Board member Helen Yñiguez and Costco Wholesale also provided tremendous resources to SRLA for this race, including a myriad of snacks for the runners, and an invaluable contribution of water from Niagara Bottling Co. SRLA had enough water to fill 40,000 cups at the 7 water stations along the course, as well as to give out thousands of individual bottles for the runners after they crossed the finish line.

Additional Support: The W. M. Keck Foundation has provided SRLA with a two-year grant to support students at some of the poorest schools in Los Angeles, and The Rose Hills Foundation has provided SRLA with a two-year grant to support students in East LA and the San Gabriel Valley.

All of our contributors honor us by their recognition of the value of Students Run LA. Since our last newsletter, these organizations have made contributions: · · · · · · · · · ·

Albert and Elaine Borchard Foundation American Honda Motor Co., Inc. Associated Administrators of Los Angeles Bank of America Carol and James Collins Foundation Costco Henry L. Guenther Foundation John W. Carson Foundation Merrill Lynch Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy

· · · · · · · · · ·

Milken Family Foundation Natixis Global Associates NBC Universal Rebecca and Richard Lewis Simon-Strauss Foundation SKETCH Foundation Sony Pictures Sterling Foundation The Rose Hills Foundation W. M. Keck Foundation

And now, mark your calendars for the Honda LA Marathon on March 20th!

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From The Coordinators Paul & Eric

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ow! It’s marathon time already. Just a few short months ago, you leaders convinced a bunch of students to try something impossible. Now, they are putting in the final mileage to be ready for the challenge of the marathon. We are proud of your efforts and those of your runners.

Join the SRLA Going Green Initiative: Get our E-Newsletter

We are so impressed by the level of self-sacrifice leaders exhibited when we met to register for the Honda LA Marathon. You did such an amazing job of training your group, that collectively, your runners defied 20 years of statistics and exceeded our marathon entry cap. Giving up your marathon entry so that a student would be able to have the experience they have trained for is truly inspiring. It shows such character and that hasn’t been lost on our sponsors. Your actions speak to the strength of the program and its goals. Because of you, every student who trained properly and met all the requirements to enter the marathon will be able to do so.

Join the SRLA Going Green Initiative by signing up to receive our newsletters via email. The advantage is that you can get all the news quickly, with just a click of the mouse, and then you can review the content, or retrieve it and save it for easy reference later. Don’t forget the reduced desk clutter and the trees you save! Email [email protected] to sign up today. Privacy is our priority.

More than any other year, we are honored that you chose to be part of this great adventure. We know how lucky your students are to have you, and we think your students know it too. In a society that most often tolerates self-centered action, you are extraordinary models of individuals working toward the greater good.

SRLA & Social Media SRLA Web site: http://www.srla.org SRLA on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ StudentsRunLA

And when you are out there on the course, or gathering up your tired yet victorious runners, know that each and every one of them is there because of you. It’s why we all became educators. Thank you for the great things you are doing, and congratulations on getting this group to the starting line!

SRLA on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/SRLA

SRLA Student Focused Website

Leaders, tell your students that they can access our Students Run LA website specifically designed for them. www.srlastudents.com

Calendar March 20

Honda LA Marathon

April 1

Scholarship Forms Available

May 25

Leader Dinner

Send us articles and pictures for our newsletter! Email to [email protected], or mail to: SRLA, 5252 Crebs Ave., Tarzana, CA 91356

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Thank You!

End-of-the-Year Contributors to Students Run LA Patricia Alexander Anthony Anderson Anette Antolin Rose Marie Antonatos Michael Appell Argus Consulting Larry Arreola Joan Atlas Charla and Michael Barnathan Eric Barron Fran and Morrie Baskin Teresa Beaudet and Gerald Giamportone Lu Ana Bercier Don Bethe Gary and Lorna Bjorklund Kristine and Justus Breese Joyce Breslin Jeff Bronzini Carla Brown James Brown Katherine Brown Diane Brunson Ines Bryan Barbara Burnett Murray Burns Scott Cline Robert Coad Bruce and Toni Corwin Veronica Cotter Morton Crair Nathan Crair Tina Crowe David Dassey Douglas and Gretchen Davies Damon Davis Chelsea Deng Eladio Diaz Kathleen Dickerson Grace and Richard Dickman

Damien Doss Susan Edwards Vincent Estrada Amy Fan Michael Feibish Murray and Bunny Fischer Adam Fratto Gisela and Jeff Friedman Cynthia Gage Jose Gallardo Laura and David Galperson Elvira Garay George-Thomas Enterprises Howard and Lucy Gest Ginny and Michael Gibbs Jonathan Gibbs Debbie Glezer Oscar Harrison Larry and Anna Hart Kenneth Healing Bonnie and Tom Herron George Hugh Richard Hugh David and Tracy Isenberg Phil Iversen Quinton and Marcia James Leslie Johnson Brian and Nada Jones Herb Katz David Kelton Richard Kent Sharon Kerson Michael Kezsely Robert and Patricia Kidwell Andrew Kindfuller Todd King David Klein Howard Kolodny Daniel and Deborah Koskovich

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Karen Kungie-Torres Margie and David Lee Debbie Leidner Gail Levine Lisa Limm David and Julie Lister Susan Little Mary Long Mark Loranger and Katie Lichtig Michael Lynn Magnolia Development Fred and Rosny Mandell Michael and Louise Mandell Larry Margo Barry and Karen Mason Jeffrey Mason Derek McCrae Betty and Estelle Mednick Marsha and Steve Mermelstein Carol Milki Kenneth and Bobbie Miller R. Michael Miller Benjamin Mills Mildred Mitchell Ernest Morales Gregory Morales Inge Morrison MTH Corporation Sheri Myers Mark and Nancy Nagayama Denise-Marie Nakamura Irv Newmark Bernard Ng Diana and Baird Nielsen Robert Novell Patrick O’Neill Mariano Orlando Ganesa and Lalitha Pandian David and Eve Panush Steve Papkin Nancy Paulikas Enrique Petrie Oscar Pinon Jeff Polak Darren and Kim Pollock Terance Power Gabriel Ramirez Jose Ramirez

Ed Rappaport Ira Ravitz Jeffrey Reisner Amy Richlik Kelley and Peter Rivera David Rodican Renee Roederer Sandy and David Rosenbaum Ruth and Bernard Rosenberg Jennifer Roslund Howard and Meaghan Roth Richard Rozman Norman and Irene Saiger Ronald Schlaifer Jeanne and David Schlesinger Bob Schwartz Marcy Shaffer and Russell Meyer Violet Sharghi and Hung Nguyen Gil Solomon Melvin Spears Sue and Bob Spears Fred Spielberg Jack Spielberg and Sarah Seaver Peachy and Buddy Spielberg Doug and Pat Sporn Scott Sullivan Karen Tallman Nashed Tanious Hortense Tarango Thomas Thompson William and Patricia Toner Behdod Ali Vaghefi Daniel Victor Roberta Villalobos Daniel Wagner Blanche Watson Bernie and Elaine Weiss Chuck Wert Mark Whalen Sarah Williams Carole and Weldon Wilson Allyne Winderman and Glenn Wasserman Lewis Winters Cari Wolk Dorothy and Stanley Wolpert Matthew Wyatt David Young

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Friendship Run (Continued from page 1)

Leader Anthony Nittle and his Horace Mann runners cross the dam in stride.

Runners cross Hansen Dam mid-point in the 18-Mile Friendship Run.

Joseph Drabinski, and his crew for taking on the monumental task of coning off the course. This year 3,300 runners participated in the 18-mile course consisting of two 9-mile loops. Students and their leaders made up about 3000 of those running while the remaining 300-plus were community members, most of whom were also training for this year’s Honda LA Marathon on March 20.

We were pleased to have new friend to SRLA, Nike, Inc, participate this year. Nike added extra fun to the event with their Mobile Unit, music on the course, pace groups, photo area, and Volt shoelaces. This provided a huge boost to the 18mile Friendship Run. Thank you, Nike! Don Francisco’s Gourmet Coffee par ticipated by ser ving coffee to the large number of friends, family, and volunteers that came out to suppor t the race. This event could not have been the success that it was without the assistance of the nearly 200 volunteers who worked tirelessly throughout the day to ensure that things ran smoothly. A special thank you to the LAPD Cadet groups that traveled from all over the Valley to volunteer at the event.

The weather was sunny and warm and it was a great day to be out at the park. Each par ticipant received a finisher’s medal, event t-shir t, and plenty of water and snacks. On the course, runners were provided water donated by Niagara Bottling Company. At the finish area runners were greeted with more water, again thanks to Niagara Bottling Company, and a large amount of food. Costco Wholesale provided bagels, Rice Krispie Treats, Spor t Beans, and Hansen’s Juice. Trader Joe’s Encino contributed 15 cases of bananas.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to the tremendous success of the 2011 Friendship Run!

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SRLA Can-Do!

I

n another effor t by SRLA Cares to instill in our students an awareness of the communities around them, and to be pro-actively involved in protecting the environment, an aluminum can collection drive was held at the January Half Marathon, and again at the SRLA 18-Mile Friendship Run in Februar y. Not only did this please Mother Ear th, it also helped to brighten up the neighborhoods around our schools. Good effor t everyone, and keep the clean-up continuing! Paul Trapani and Abel Navar, along with their trusty volunteer, counted a mound of cans donated by students and leaders for SRLA Cares!

Reuse A Shoe: This picture is to go with the article in the box of the same name.

SRLA Students Meet Marathon Winner

Nike’s Reuse-A-Shoe Program: Got Sole!

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A Marathon committee personnel brought Wesley Korir, the first back-to-back winner of the Honda LA Marathon, and last year’s winner, to meet and inspire SRLA students training at Banning High School in Wilmington. The students were excited to meet him “up close and personal”, and are motivated to train even harder for their big event in March.

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000 old athletic shoes were donated to the Nike Reuse-A-Shoe program at the recent SRLA 18Mile Friendship Run on February 6th. Thanks to the “Nike Grind” process, these worn-out shoes will be given new life as playground flooring and athletic tracks. SRLA thanks everyone who donated their old tread to become new tracks!

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Half Marathons

LA County Half Marathon


hen training for a marathon, there is little time to sit around basking in the success of a distance run before the next benchmark goal arrives. December found us looking east where we gathered for the L.A. County 1/2 Marathon in Pomona. Staging out of the L.A. County Fairgrounds, we ran this event for the first time. Thus, we didn’t have the shared wisdom on how to handle the course. It was going to be 13.1 miles on a course with hills, a loop around a lake, and even a speedway drag strip. Budgeting energy, while keeping a proper pace, was going to be a challenge for us all.

Our group, now able to claim the title of distance runners, took to this challenge with the same enthusiasm and expectation of success as in each previous run. With the first few miles relatively flat, runners found their pace and imagined themselves to be dragsters hauling down the racetrack before continuing out into the surrounding parkland where the tough miles began.

W

And those miles were tough! A beautiful sunny morning pushed the temperature high enough that our runners had to be careful to stay hydrated. The lake, it turns out, is set down into the park area, forcing us to climb and dip all the way around it. While a beautiful course, the constant incline and decline began to add a degree of difficulty beyond the simple 13.1mile distance. This did not deter our runners. They set their determination level to high, used the tricks and skills taught to them by their leaders, and continued on until reaching a well deserved finish line. It was most impressive to see the smiling and proud faces of our runners receiving their race shirts and wearing their


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Southern California Half Marathons


beautiful snowflake finisher’s medals. Next stop, our yearly migration to Irvine, to do the distance all over again.

crowds along the course, but also from teammates as we looped back by each other in an almost disorienting star pattern.

Perhaps the most challenging part of the Southern California 1/2 Marathon in Irvine is that it comes right after the winter holiday break. It is so easy to take some time off promising to work in the mileage the next day, or the next. Suddenly, it’s early January and we’re back together in support of Woodbridge High School, the sponsor for this event. It’s one of the few events where SRLA is not the majority of participants. Our runners were simply part of the crowd and everyone did an excellent job of maintaining good running etiquette.

This run became as much a challenge to our mental toughness as it was to our feet and legs. But SRLA runners are tough, and it showed as we streamed across the finish line with smiles and spirit, knowing we had conquered the distance. With 13.1 miles behind us, we could now set our sites for an even bigger challenge, the 18-mile Friendship Run.

This run provides a special lesson: you get out what you put in. Those who allowed laziness and too much holiday food to dictate the weeks between our earlier half and this run discovered just how tough 13.1 miles is despite the relatively flat course. Undaunted, our runners again showed their spirit and intention to complete this run. So often we could hear the prized words of encouragement not only from the gathered


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FUNDERS 2011 Thank You to ALL of our FUNDERS! 3M

McCourt Group

Aetna Foundation

Merrill Lynch

Ahmanson Foundation

Metropolitan Theatres

Albert and Elaine Borchard Foundation

Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy

American Honda Motor Co., Inc.

Milken Family Foundation

American Honda Associates

Natixis Global Associates

Associated Administrators of LA

NBC Universal

AT&T

Nestle USA

Bank of America

Neutrogena

Beyond The Bell

Niagara Bottling, LLC

California Endowment

NIKE, Inc.

California Statewide Certified Development Corporation

Northrop Grumman EChO

California Wellness Foundation

Paramount Pictures

Carol and James Collins Foundation

RaceReady

City of Santa Monica

RAGNAR Relay

Clorox

Ralph L Smith Foundation

Coldwell Banker

Ralph M. Parsons Foundation

Columbia Management Company

Rebecca & Richard Lewis

Costco Wholesale

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

Dwight Stuart Youth Fund

Ruth & Allen Ziegler Foundation

Eisner Foundation

Sascha Brastoff Foundation

Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Fund

Sidney Stern Memorial Trust

Evercore Trust Company

Simon-Strauss Foundation

Flora L. Thornton Foundation

SKETCH Foundation

Foundation for Global Sports Development

Sony Pictures

Henry L. Guenther Foundation

Starbucks

J.B. and Emily Van Nuys Charities

Sterling Foundation

John C. Griswold Foundation

TGI Friday’s

John W. Carson Foundation Kaiser Permanente – Bellflower

The Gas Company

Kaiser Permanente – Panorama City

The Green Foundation

Kaiser Permanente – Southern California

The Pritzker Family Foundation

Kenneth T. and Eileen L. Norris Foundation

The Rose Hills Foundation

LA84 Foundation

Trader Joe’s

LA Marathon

Union Bank Foundation

Larry Rawson

W. M. Keck Foundation

Los Angeles Police Department – Cadets Program

Weingart Foundation

Los Angeles Unified School District

Wells Fargo Foundation

NOTE: 93% of all donations go directly to the SRLA program; only 7% is used for management and fundraising.

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Board of Directors 2010-2011

Friendship Run Photos

Nathan Crair Director Merrill Lynch President of the Board

Frederic Mandell, D.D.S. Studio City Dental Group Secretary of the Board

Peter Abraham Creative Director Los Angeles Marathon

Marsha Charney Co-Founder Students Run LA

Alvaro Cor tés

Along with their medals, students collect shoe laces provided by Nike.

Assistant Superintendent Beyond The Bell Los Angeles Unified School District

Beth Gordie Latham & Watkins

Steven Miller Sensus Consulting Inc.

Stephan Morikawa Assistant Vice President, Corporate Community American Honda Motor Co., Inc.

Veronica Perez Par tner for Public Policy & Regulation Holland & Knight

Larr y Rawson Greenwich Investment Par tners

Anjanette Richelieu Public Relations Manager Neutrogena Corporation

Adam Scully-Power Vice President, Regional Sales Director Columbia Management Group

Mark Shinderman

As evidenced by their 2010 marathon singlets, these two boys are proud of their finish!

Girls from Banning High School celebrate their successful finish of 18 miles.

Par tner Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP

Eric Spears Principal, Community Day Schools Los Angeles Unified School District Co-Founder, Students Run LA

Paul Trapani Teacher, John R. Wooden High School Co-Founder, Students Run LA

Charles Wer t President and CEO Evercore Trust Company N.A.

Helen Yñiguez Regional Marketing Manager Costco Wholesale

Eager to know how well they did, students crowd around the results board.

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We’d like to thank the following people for their contributions to this newsletter:

Photos

Joe Mendoza Rosny Mandell

Staff

Marsha Charney

Executive Director

All for one and one for all…we finished!

New Address 5252 Crebs Avenue Tarzana, CA 91356

Students Run America

Rosny Mandell

Nikki Carelli

Director of Operations

Program Director

Ginny Gibbs

Phyllis Newman

Development Director

Program Assistant

Senior Coordinators

Eric Spears, CDS, K-12 Paul Trapani, John R. Wooden H.S.

Coordinators

Abel Navar, Boyle Heights H.S. Joe Mendoza, Banning H.S.

Leo Veleff - www.istudio12.com

Produced By

SRLA: 818.654.3360 www.srla.org