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Columbus GirlTrek uses walking to build Black women's sisterhood, wellness

A photo of a group of women smiling, grouped in front of a tree.
Trae Grace
/
WYSO
Members of GirlTrek Columbus gather for a Saturday morning walk at Blacklick Woods in Reynoldsburg, Ohio.

On this week's episode of We Outside, I join a group of Black women in Columbus, Ohio, as they lace up their sneakers and hit the pavement with GirlTrek, a national movement dedicated to healing, advocacy, and transforming Black women’s health. Founded by two friends in 2010, GirlTrek now counts over 1.3 million members, inspiring women to walk for wellness and mobilize their communities for change. Columbus crew leader Renee Smith and fellow GirlTrekkers share firsthand what it feels like to find sisterhood and joy, just by putting one foot in front of the other.

Trae Grace grew up in a radio station in Detroit where her father, Gene Elzy, was music director and had a jazz and blues music program.