Stories And Inspiration

Blair Ramsey Returns to GO FAR Team as Mentor

Submitted by Anonymous on Jul 29th 2014 - 10:00AM. | Perma Link

When Blair Ramsey joined GO FAR as a fifth grader at Greensboro’s Morehead Elementary, she already had the running bug. She was running for fun on Saturdays with her mom.

The school’s PE teacher, Vicky Schrock, was starting a GO FAR team. “In elementary school there is no track team, so being on GO FAR gave me that team feeling,” Ramsey said. “It was a fun way to participate in my favorite sport. Having a group to run with always made it exciting.”

That one year with GO FAR gave Ramsey the confidence to continue running. She liked the 5Ks and seeing her times improve with new personal records. “I loved the feeling of a personal record and realized that running was something that I loved and wanted to continue with,” Ramsey said.Blair Ramsey GO FAR

Six years later, the Grimsley High School rising junior and track and field star has quite a bit of experience under her belt. This spring she won the 1,600 meters in the 4A state championships with a time of 4:57. In early July she ran the 1,500 meters at the USA Track and Field Junior Outdoor Championships in Eugene, Oregon, with a time of 4:34, finishing seventh. She also runs with the Greensboro Pacesetters Track Club in the summer.

She plans to take not only her athletic prowess, but also her GO FAR experience back to Morehead this fall as a mentor to the GO FAR team.

“She is excellent with children,” Schrock said. “She also is a perfect mentor for other runners because she models what it takes to be a successful athlete: dedication, hard work, and good character.”

This is the first time Schrock has used a student mentor for the Morehead team, which typically has about 60 third through fifth graders. “I like that the students will be able to see from first-hand experience what they can continue to do with running,” she said.

Ramsey’s mentoring duties will involve more than running. She will host a few Saturday family GO FAR practices and plan a warm-up activity, running lesson, cool-down, and fun nutrition fact. She will also run in the November GO FAR race with the students.

Mentoring isn’t something Ramsey takes lightly. “Mentoring, to me, is just as special to the mentor as it is to the person being mentored,” she said. “For the mentor, it puts responsibility on them because they know that people are looking up to them. It is so important for everyone to have someone to look up to and know that someone believes in them. I believe mentoring does just that.”

Ramsey never had any mentors assigned to her along the way, but there have been many people that she looks up to and considers mentors. “Having these people inspires me to try to make a positive impact on someone’s life like they have made on mine,” she said.

Her mentoring goes beyond running. She’s part of the Brooks Buddies Mentoring Program at Brooks Global Studies Elementary School in Greensboro during the school year. She spends one day during lunch each week reading, playing, or eating outside with a lunch buddy.

“As a mentor, I hope to encourage all kids to pursue what they love doing—whether it is running, singing, acting, soccer, dancing, writing, or school,” Ramsey said. “Whatever you are passionate about, you will excel in.”

Check out Ramsey’s encouraging reasons to join GO FAR in our April 2013 interview with her and read more about her inspiring story.

Perma Link

Archives

Show All Records
2023 (2)
2022 (6)
2021 (12)
2020 (16)
2019 (6)
2018 (6)
2017 (6)
2016 (11)
2015 (20)
2014 (36)
2013 (25)

Search By Title