INSPIRED BY PENGUINS

Elijah DelaCerda- Junior Olympics Regional Meet, Albuquerque New Mexico

There is an amazing group of kids from Alamosa that meet  with their Coach, Peter de La Cerda in the afternoons to train for the XC Club Nationals in Albuquerque on December 8th.  The Penguin club which runs mainly by donations and the help of parents is making a huge impact in the lives of many youngsters.

For the past month, I've been meeting with this talented and hard working group of kids ages 5 to 15. They have been my inspiration to get back into shape. With pain or no pain. I am inspired. Out of 34 members, 24 of them made it to Club Nationals and let me tell you they are strong.

At the Wild Life Refugee in Alamosa

with Oscar, Brayan, Ramon and Miguel



Thanksgiving was a blast! Me and a few of the penguins went for a nice run along the railroad tracks before we all celebrated the day with our families. Thank God that was a nice easy run. They are so fit and strong that they can literally kill me any given day.

 Last Tuesday I had the brilliant idea to show up for one f their hard workouts. That day we met at the legendary Cole Park, where Olympians like Deena Kastor and many  Adams State national champions once did the 1km repeats. Well, make story short, that day I survived a 2x 1km/ 3 minutes rest- 2x 600m in grass 2 min rest and 200m sprint. Even tough, i survived the workout, they killed me. This kids are fit and ready to go. I don't remember when I was the last time I was so sore after a hard workout.

I love showing to their  practice and going for an easy run with them. Their free spirit and genuine love for the sport is contagious.  How to forget the day when they had 1-2-3-2-1 minute surges on the dikes. There is no doubt in my mind these kids are already set for success and I'm not only talking about them performing well at Junior Olympics but in their lives in general. The lessons of hard work, commitment and discipline are lessons that they will carry on for the rest of their lives.

For the meantime, Thank You, Club Penguin for inspiring me and helping me get back into shape. You all are already winners and regardless on how you do at nationals you already are a part of something great.

To the  director and head Coach of the club, Peter De La Cerda, his wife Ronda and assistant Coach Erin,  thank you for allowing me to come and interact with the kids. Im so looking forward to come and cheer for them on the big day. The Penguins on the news

Easy Run at the Railroad Tracks in Alamosa

Oscar, Brayan, Ramon and Miguel

 

PD: The Club runs solely on donations. So if you are interested in making any donations for the Club please send me an email to: zoila@in-the-arena.org  and I will be more than happy to direct you with the Coaches.

FOREVER GRATEFUL!

Halloween celebrations at the tutoring program turned into a creative learning experience for our kids.

It all started with an idea. One of our volunteers from Adams State University, Cristina Mace stepped it up and asked if she could plan something fun for Halloween. 

Since the beginning of the year Cristina volunteers her time to the program one time a week. The kids have learned to love her and respect her. Some the girls refer to her as " My new best friend Cristina".  Cristina is been long enough in the program that she has learned to identify the needs of our kids. For her it was easy to realize that many of them were not going to be able to afford a custome or even celebrate the scary and fun day, Halloween.

 Fredi:  With a huge smile " Zoila look what I got for tomorrow, can you please take a picture of me on it?" 

Me: With a huge smile " I would love to! Give me a hug, you deserved a costume and more"

Araceli, at the Alamosa Elementary School annual Halloween parade :)

With her idea in mind  Cristina managed to get  donations from her classmates and friends from the University. She collected customs for kids and was able to buy material to help the girls make  their own designed  costumes. Students from her social class volunteered to come and help. That Wednesdey before holloween the center took a different shape. 

New visitors showed up with materials, cookies and juice. A small party. Girls enjoyed the crafting activity and most importantly the unexpected guest, the time, ideas, and great intentions. At the end, they were set to celebrate with everyone else the following day.

At the Harvest Party!

Cristina went the extra mile, on Halloween day Cristina along with her classmates and friends came by the apartments to take the kids  to a harvest party in town. Next day, kids came up to me and told me all about how much fun the had. Its been so fun to have Adams State University students come aboard and make an impact on the lives of our kids.

Forever grateful!