Recent grants from Inland Empire Community Foundation (IECF) through the Youth Grantmakers Committee Fund – Riverside and the IECF Community Impact Fund are giving one nonprofit organization a stellar opportunity to broaden its impact.
Girls on the Run Inland Empire, a local chapter of the international nonprofit offering after-school programs—from running and other physical activities to life skills training—for grade school girls, is using those IECF resources to add needed hours to its part-time staff.
“The funds have already helped us tremendously,” said Molly Widdicombe, Girls on the Run Inland Empire Council Director. “Our 30-hour-a-week program manager is responsible for running the programs throughout Riverside and San Bernardino counties, which are very large; 27,000 square miles. So, to add on the extra 10 hours a week to her role really aids in the responsibility.
“Now, we can expand and continue to move forward,” she added. 
The revered nonprofit has generated positive buzz for its key programs and the way they continually help grade-school girls build confidence, encourage healthy habits, and empower girls to recognize their “inner strength and potential.”
One significant event, a celebratory 5K run, recently unfolded at Martin Luther King High School in Riverside.
In the meantime, the upcoming Sneaker Soiree stands out. The popular fundraising gala will take place on Feb.7 at Loft 84 in Riverside. Attendees are encouraged to wear cocktail attire with their favorite sneakers. Auctions and inspiring talks filter into the celebration, offering a good way to raise funds for scholarships.
To date, the nonprofit has served more than 1,500 girls in the Inland Empire since 2020.
“We’re expanding into Fontana and Rancho Cucamonga,” Widdicombe said. “We’re going a little bit more west into San Bernardino County. Our start may have been in Riverside, and we will continue to have a great foothold there, but we are also starting to see teams in Temecula, Big Bear, and Twentynine Palms.”
Widdicombe recalls the origins of the local chapter and how far the organization has come.
“Our international organization did some market research and saw a need in Inland Empire, because the area was growing,” she said of the decision to launch a local chapter in Riverside in late 2019. “They realized more families are moving out here, because of the more affordable housing. There was a need to have more programs for kids here, especially when parents are working, and the kids were in after-school programs anyway.”
To that end, the international organization rallied a group of individuals who became the founding local board of Girls on the Run Inland Empire. The programs were ready to begin in March 2020, then stalled a bit due to the pandemic.
“We really didn’t get to host teams as we know them today in parks, community centers or schools until late 2021 and early 2022, which is when I became involved,” Widdicombe added. “We’ve really grown over the last few years.”
Inspiration abounds. “Within every girl is a brave and worthy soul capable of achieving her dreams,” boasts the nonprofit’s website.
Widdicombe strongly believes every young girl should have the opportunity to experience the joy of finding a community, developing friendships, and building confidence—something that lasts beyond the finish line.
She encourages people interested in starting a team, becoming a coach or volunteering to visit the nonprofit’s website.
In the meantime, Widdicombe praises all the unique programs available for various age groups, from third to fifth grade girls to those in sixth to eighth grade. She also points out the significance of how well the nonprofit strives to build and instil the “Six C’s”—confidence, character, care, connection, confidence, contribution.
“I find great joy in this work,” she said. “What excites me is that we have an organization that thrives on that volunteer commitment, and we couldn’t do it otherwise.”
Coming up! GOTR Inland Empire 2026 Sneaker Soiree | February 7, 2026
Learn more at gotrinlandempire.org
This story originally appeared in the Press Enterprise, December 2025.
Stay up to date on all the good work we’re doing through the power of philanthropy. Sign up for our eNewsletter, Philanthropy Matters, today.
