In January 2017, SoleKIDs was born in Boise, Idaho. In March of the same year, 30 excited runners were ready to start the first ever SoleKIDs program.

Over the next five seasons, those 30 young runners quickly became thousands of runners across the Boise area. All have participated in the 8-week after-school running program, and even more runners have crossed the SoleKIDs 5K finish line.

In January 2020, on behalf of the SoleKIDS team, co-founders Jamie and Jonathan Stevens accepted the Idaho’s Brightest Stars Award. The award was presented by Serve Idaho, the Governor’s Commission on Service and Volunteerism. Watch the video.

In 2020, SoleKIDS expanded beyond Idaho’s borders for the first time, with the first out-of-state program beginning in Seattle, Washington.

In the fall of 2022, SoleKIDS arrived in La Grande for its kickoff season! With the help of our fantastic curriculum and the support of our community, SoleKIDs coaches foster a community of runners that takes pride in themselves and their team. We train together and at the season’s end we hold a 5k race that showcases all the progress and hard work from the season.

In the fall of 2023, the number of SoleKIDS participants more than doubled as practice locations tripled across La Grande. In the fall of 2024, we added a fourth location in Imbler and reached 150 registrants! We are excited the SoleKIDS program is loved by so many and are grateful to those volunteers who make it possible for the program to continue.