Detroit’s Rhonda Walker Hosts ‛Get Fit’ Charity Run

The Rhonda Walker Foundation is hosting a charity run on July 31, 2022 for the benefit of its Girls into Women program, registration ends at midnight today, July 29, 2022. Dubbed the “Give and Get Fit Movement,” there are four main run events: 10-kilometer timed run, 5-kilometer timed run, 5-kilometer untimed walk or run, and a virtual 5-kilometer walk or run.

All events have a $40 registration fee with proceeds going to the Girls into Women program. 5K and 10K timed run entrants will also receive a performance shirt, finisher’s medal and special discounts from the event’s partners. Similarly, the foundation is also organizing several fitness classes tomorrow, Saturday, July 30, 2022. Registration fee ranges from $40 to $50, depending on class, and are also for the benefit of the same program. “I love seeing the runners and walkers of all ages and cultures all in one place inspiring and cheering each other on. It’s such a fun, inspiring morning to promote the vital importance of health and wellness in our community,” Rhonda Walker, the foundation’s founder and CEO, said. “With the generous support of our sponsors and exhibitors, we’re able to give metro Detroiters a fun, educational experience that encourages them to focus on fitness while give back to Detroit youth.”

The Girls in Women program is a five-year mentorship where the teen girls are assisted with their college preparation, mentored on career and personal developemnt, advised on health and wellness, and provided with community outreach opportunities. The foundation reports that around 250 girls have benefitted from their program, and the Give and Get Fit Movement has raised over $300,000 for this effort. They also boast a 100% high school graduation rate for all the girls who have undergone their mentorship. The Rhoda Walker Foundation — who organized these events — started in 2003 by its namesake news anchor at WDIV TV 4 Detroit. She was inspired to start her foundation after a teen approached her. “Along the way I met a teen that asked me how she can do that when everyone around her tells her she won’t accomplish anything and won’t amount to anything better than the people around her in her family and inner city neighborhood. These were family members putting her down, discouraging her and lowering her self-confidence and self-esteem,” she wrote on the foundation’s website.

“I realized at that moment one speech cannot change lives and that I needed to connect these kids with positive role models and reinforce my message over a longer period of time. I founded the Rhonda Walker Foundation ‘Girls into Women’ program shortly after the day I spoke to that girl.”