Ep. 105 Native Women Running. With Verna NezBegay Volker

“It was 2016 when I was showing up at races and no one looked like me”

Verna NezBegay Volker started Native Women Running because she wanted to make the sport more inclusive and see more people who looked like herself at race events. She didn't know what to expect when she started the group and it's been so successful that it's now her full-time job. Creating a safe space for native women is something Verna takes pride in as she wants to share stories and ensure opportunities for people.

“We went from 50 runners to, what 33.1k now? And my goal was to always give everyone a platform. As native people we do a lot of storytelling. People have asked me why it's grown so much. And all I simply say is I just share stories. That's it.”

Native Women Running is popping up in more and more places. We've met people running for the group here in Vancouver and I'm so impressed with their growth. It's awesome what Verna is doing for our sport as she is getting native women out and truly making the sport more inclusive every day. It's easy to get involved, just check out their IG page and go from there! I'm so excited to share this conversation and I hope you’ll let us know what you think.

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Music by Paolo Argentino from Pixabay

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