A run club that makes strides toward inclusion
Plus: Charlotte's federal judges ban use of AI in legal briefs; Review of 'Back to the Future' musical; Podcast on entrepreneur's journey; BofA concerts postponed
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A local teen founded Mighty Striders Run Club over a year ago to create a sense of belonging in the running community for students with special needs
Mighty Striders Run Club meets every Sunday morning at Boyce Park from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Morgan Boonshaft (pictured far right) founded the club in May 2023.
By Lindsey Banks
On a recent Sunday morning, the paved trail at James Boyce Park in south Charlotte was filled with nearly a dozen teenagers dressed in running shoes and T-shirts with the “Mighty Striders Run Club” logo.
Just a few minutes into their weekly practice, it’s clear that Mighty Striders is more than a running group — it’s a community for students with special needs to experience the camaraderie of sports and to find their stride, both on and off the track.
About half of the Mighty Striders are student volunteers from Charlotte high schools, including the club’s founder, Morgan Boonshaft, who’s a recent Providence Day School graduate and competed on her school’s cross country and track teams.
During the pandemic, Boonshaft started running with her friend’s brother, Nino Vila, who has Down syndrome. That experience made her realize that people with special needs are often excluded from high school sports teams. Nino is now a member of Mighty Striders.
“It was kind of sad for me to see that there wasn’t an opportunity or outlet for children with special needs to be able to do this, and I wanted to share my love of running with them,” Boonshaft said. “I think running teaches so many life lessons that it definitely needed to be shared.”
There are about eight consistent members of the running club, all of whom have special needs, and a group of about eight volunteers from local high schools that show up for practices. The club also competes in local races, like the Charlotte Summer Track Series’s 100-meter dash in June at Myers Park High.
Practice always starts with a warm-up lap and stretching. The group then runs a one-mile loop around the park, with student volunteers partnering with club members so no one is running alone. They meet back up to refuel with water and a snack, and then finish the practice with games, like red-light, green-light or duck-duck-goose.
On a recent hot Sunday morning, the club ended practice with water games, taking turns wearing a flamingo pool floatie while everyone threw water balloons.
The practices brighten everyone’s day, Boonshaft said — not just those of the club members. Student volunteers and the members’ parents look forward to practice every Sunday, too.
Nino, one of the club’s founding members, is a rising sophomore at Socrates Academy. His twin sister, Veronica, is a student volunteer for the club. Their mother, Vicki Vila, drives them to practice every Sunday and watches them from under a shaded tree.
“I’m just happy that [Nino] has a place where not only can you get exercise, learn about fitness and health, but it’s the place where you can find friendships and a sense of belonging,” Vila said.
Nino told The Ledger he looks forward to seeing Boonshaft every week and running with his friends.
“They worship [Morgan],” Vila said. “She has done such an amazing job with them. They all come [to practice] because of her. She makes them feel good. She builds them up.”
Mighty Striders is the only running club of its kind in Charlotte, Boonshaft said. Athletic organizations, like Perfect Balance Training Center, have programs for individuals with disabilities in the area.
Marie Claire Walsh-Miot is also a founding member of the running club. She’s also a childhood friend and girlfriend of Nino.
“[Marie Claire] is building skills here that can transfer to high school, so that she’s not scared to jump in those situations,” said her mother, Eileen Walsh-Miot.
Marie Claire is a rising sophomore at Charlotte Catholic High, where she competes on her school’s track team in the shot put and discus throwing events. Boonshaft wanted Marie Claire to have the opportunity to practice at Mighty Striders, so she recruited a student volunteer who throws for Providence Day’s track team.
Walsh-Miot said Marie Claire’s track team at Charlotte Catholic has over 100 students, so Mighty Striders offers an opportunity to practice in a less overwhelming setting.
“We know that there’s going to be times and places where our kids are not accepted and loved and welcomed, so we’re going to push and advocate for those spaces that do that for kids,” Walsh-Miot said. “It’s important for Marie Claire to get loved on and do a little running.”
Avery Coggins, a rising junior at East Mecklenburg High, looks forward to running club every week, sometimes getting dressed and ready to go hours before she has to leave, said her father, Chris Coggins.
Coggins, who serves on the board of the Down Syndrome Association of Greater Charlotte, said Mighty Striders has motivated Avery to be more active and eat healthy throughout the week.
“She gives me grief now,” Coggins said with a laugh. “She’s like, ‘Dad, too many cookies.’”
When Boonshaft first founded the club, she reached out to organizations like GiGi’s Playhouse and the Down Syndrome Association, which is how Coggins found the running club for Avery.
“Building the interaction of how to get a conversation started and end it — she’s just learning those social skills,” Coggins said.
Running forward: Boonshaft, a rising freshman at Brown University and a member of the college’s cross country and track teams, said she’s working on establishing Mighty Striders Run Club as a nonprofit organization. She hopes to start clubs in the communities where some of the student volunteers are attending college in the fall. Her sister, Emery, a rising sophomore at Providence Day, will take over the Mighty Striders practices in Charlotte while Morgan is at college.
“We do this because we want everyone to be included,” Boonshaft said. “We created a sense of belonging where everyone is happy and loves each other.”
Lindsey Banks is a staff reporter for The Ledger: lindsey@cltledger.com
🏃🏃 For more information on Mighty Striders Run Club, visit MightyStriders.org or check out the club’s Instagram page.
Today’s supporting sponsor is Landon A. Dunn, attorney-at-law in Matthews:
Federal judges in Charlotte ban use of AI in court filings; worries about made-up case citations
A lot of people are experimenting with artificial intelligence nowadays. But one place that you’re now no longer allowed to test it out is in federal court filings in Charlotte.
Federal judges in the Western District of North Carolina last month directed that lawyers are not to use artificial intelligence in writing legal briefs submitted to the courts. Any brief or memo submitted to the federal courts in Charlotte must now include a certification that “no artificial intelligence was employed in doing the research” for the documents and that every legal citation has been checked for accuracy.
“Briefs and memoranda prepared using artificial intelligence (AI) platforms (e.g. ChatGPT) have increased the Court’s concern regarding the reliability and accuracy of filings,” the order states. “In particular, the Court is concerned regarding whether factual and legal citations or references in court filings have been properly vetted by counsel.”
It is signed by seven federal judges based in the Western District.
Charlotte’s federal judges, shown here in a photo illustration created by ChatGPT, have imposed a ban on using artificial intelligence to prepare court briefs.
It cites no examples of troublesome court filings in Charlotte but says that the judges have noted reports of briefs in other parts of the country that have contained “fictitious case cites and unsupported arguments” generated by AI programs.
‘Smith vs. ABC Corp.’: Nationally, there have been several reports of lawyers and people representing themselves using ChatGPT to create legal briefs that invent, or “hallucinate,” legal cases in their citations. Examples include a Missouri case that cited “Smith v. ABC Corporation” and “Jones v. XYZ Company” and a New York case that cited legal precedents in “Varghese v. China Southern Airlines” and “Shaboon v. Egypt Air” — none of which were found to exist. —TM
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Review: The DeLorean dazzles in the ‘Back to the Future’ musical. But the bland tunes and updates to the 1985 storyline are far from timeless.
The 1985 hit movie “Back to the Future” has been made into a musical that’s showing through Sunday as part of Blumenthal Arts’ Broadway Lights series.
And if you’re thinking that watching a musical version of the film sounds as though it could be fun, well, arts critic Lawrence Toppman took it in last week … and was left less-than-impressed.
In a review for The Ledger, Toppman writes:
I am happy to report that … this is one amazing DeLorean. It seems to soar, speed, turn on a dime and disappear into space when it reaches the magical 88 mph.
Unfortunately, as soon as it leaves, humans come back to sing Alan Silvestri’s and Glen Ballard’s interchangeably bland songs, speak Bob Gale’s simplified script — even more exaggerated than the screenplay he wrote with Bob Zemeckis for the 1985 film — and deliver performances that ape the originals from that picture, down to body postures and line readings.
This might enchant folks like the guy across the aisle, who told a pal “Back to the Future” was the second-best movie ever made. (The best? “Back to the Future 2.” I swear he said that.)
➡️ You can read Toppman’s full review here.
🎧 New podcast: From a mud hut in Turkey to an N.C. entrepreneur
Imagine growing up in a remote village in Turkey, where your house is made of mud and hay, and running water is a mile away. This was the early life of Michal Bay, whose incredible journey from such humble beginnings to becoming a successful entrepreneur in North Carolina is recounted in a recent episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast.
If you love a good entrepreneur story, you might check this one out.
Bay, who was named one of The Charlotte Ledger’s 40 Over 40 award winners this year, redeveloped Merino Mill in Mooresville — a 130-year-old former textile mill — and opened a burger restaurant, a pizza place and a taqueria. Other stops in his entrepreneurial journey include selling rugs and furniture, exporting frozen beef from Europe and washing dishes in a London restaurant.
When our exceptional podcast host Steve Dunn asked him about his recipe for business success, regardless of industry, Bay said:
If you look at the business the way everybody else looks at it, like you answer the questions like everybody else, you’re going to get same result as everybody else. But you have to think completely different, much better. You have to work much harder and smarter and do your homework before even you start the business. And the key is, make it better than anyone else and cheaper than anyone else, and don’t think about the money first. Think about succeeding. Think about your delighted customers.
You can listen to the full interview here:
This episode is sponsored by SouthPark Community Partners, an independent nonprofit organization whose mission is to lead SouthPark's advancement by driving economic vitality, creating memorable experiences, and ensuring an extraordinary quality of life.
The Charlotte Ledger Podcast features conversations on local topics including business, nonprofits, education and more. It’s available on major podcast platforms including Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Check it out!
You might be interested in these Charlotte events: Restaurant Week, 24 Hours of Booty, regional transportation talk
Events submitted by readers to The Ledger’s events board:
TUESDAY: Let’s Talk about Regional Transportation, 5-6:30 p.m., Envision Charlotte, 932 Seigle Ave. Join county commissioner at-large Leigh Altman and Charlotte Area Chamber public policy chair Bryan Holladay for a discussion of regional transportation. Free.
JULY 19-28: Queen’s Feast: Charlotte Restaurant Week. Find fresh flavors during Queen’s Feast, July 19-28, 2024. Discover new favorites as 100+ restaurants in 8 metro-area counties showcase their cuisine with 3-course, prix fixe dining deals. Meals $30-$50 per person.
JULY 26-27: 24 Hours of Booty. 7 p.m. - 7 p.m. Queens University of Charlotte/Myers Park Traditional School. 24 Hours of Booty isn’t a race or an endurance event. Riders and walkers can set their own mileage goals and get on and off the police-secured course as much as they would like throughout the 24 hours. Set up a tent in Bootyville to relax in between your trips around the beautiful Myers Park Booty Loop and enjoy catered meals, snacks and drinks in our food tent, including a midnight pizza party. We are one team with one goal, and that is having an immediate impact on the lives of those affected by cancer. Price varies.
➡️ List your event on the Ledger events board.
In brief:
RNC’s North Carolina ties: Speakers with N.C. ties at this week’s Republican National Convention in Milwaukee are expected to include Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, U.S. Rep. Richard Hudson, former Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board candidate Annette Albright, Samaritan’s Purse CEO Franklin Graham, former Charlotte City Council candidate Vanessa Faura and UNC Chapel Hill fraternity brothers who hoisted an American flag during campus protests.
No bond for murder suspect: A Mecklenburg judge on Friday ordered the 18-year-old charged in connection with a string of apparently random shootings Tuesday morning held without bond. Carlos Roberto Diaz is charged with one count of murder, five counts of attempted murder and other felonies. A 16-year-old was also accused of participating. (WCNC)
Truist to cut tech jobs: Charlotte-based Truist plans an undisclosed number of job cuts in its technology division in the next few months, part of a restructuring plan. (Biz Journal, subscriber-only)
BofA concerts postponed: Country music star Morgan Wallen is postponing his two Charlotte shows at Bank of America Stadium that were scheduled for this week, citing illness. He was scheduled to perform Thursday and Friday, but the shows will move to Oct. 18 and 19. (WSOC)
EV plant plans postponed: Vietnamese electric vehicle maker VinFast plans to delay the opening of its $4B plant in Chatham County, outside of Raleigh, from 2025 to 2028, amid slower-than-forecast sales industrywide. (Reuters)
Breweries unite for injured officers: Twenty local breweries are teaming up on July 27 to raise money for the five injured officers from the deadly April 29 shootout in east Charlotte. The event will be at Suffolk Punch in South End, and tickets are $40. Details here.
Field hockey teams head to Olympics: Well-wishers gathered at Providence Day School on Saturday to send off the U.S. men’s and women’s field hockey teams to the Olympics. The teams are based in Charlotte. Mayor Vi Lyles said: “These remarkable athletes embody the spirit of Charlotte — determination, teamwork and excellence. We’re immensely proud to send them off to Paris, knowing they carry the hopes and dreams of our city with them.” (Fox 46)
Taking stock
Unless you are a day trader, checking your stocks daily is unhealthy. So how about weekly? How local stocks of note fared last week (through Friday’s close), and year to date:
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Executive editor: Tony Mecia; Managing editor: Cristina Bolling; Staff writer: Lindsey Banks; Business manager: Brie Chrisman, BC Creative