Logan, Utah • Running and reading go hand in hand in a northern Utah nonprofit aimed at helping refugees learn English while developing a love for athletics.
Athletics United was launched three years ago as a running club and evolved to include two nights per week of tutoring, said founders Mike and Kristi Spence of Logan. They created the group with friend Glynn Hadley to create a safe space for the children to make friends and learn English.
"We didn't know exactly what form that would take," Mike Spence said. "We just knew if you created a positive, safe atmosphere, we could put people together, use running as an ice breaker and then start to get to know one another and then see where it took us from there.