The Washington Redskins Charitable Foundation took over Go Ape Zip Line & Treetop Adventure in Rockville, Md., on Tuesday afternoon.
Twenty-five students from Roosevelt High School's just keep livin program put their fears aside to master the six different obstacle courses Go Ape offers. Through encouragement and trust, students worked together to make their way through suspended ladders, Tarzan swings and propel down zip lines at running speed.
The Washington Redskins Charitable Foundation hosted the Go Ape Ropes Course Adventure with Just Keep Livin on Tuesday September 13, 2016.
Through the *jk livin *program, currently in its third year at Roosevelt, students are encouraged to make positive life choices to improve their physical and mental health through exercise, teamwork, gratitude, nutrition and community service. The Go Ape Adventure Course is one of several events hosted for Roosevelt through their partnership with the Washington Redskins Charitable Foundation.
Redskins' alumnus and two-time Super Bowl champion Gary Clark, who encouraged students safely from the canopy ground, spent the afternoon cheering and high fiving each teens as they made it to the bottom of the zip line, and provided words of encouragement before heading out on the course.
"[When students started there was] a little fear of the unknown, but as they figured out what they were doing they became comfortable with it and relaxed," Clark said. "Now they don't want to leave, they want to stay and stay and stay. They came together as a group which was awesome."
In addition to teamwork, a large part of completing the course successfully was maintaining a positive attitude. Treasure Henderson, a senior at Roosevelt, saw the impact of attitude between her classmates during the afternoon. "I feel like you can motivate your peers or anyone else if you encourage them to do their best, especially if they are feeling like they can't make things possible."
Francis Ortiz, also a senior this year, related his experience on the course to skills he could take away in the future. "Anywhere you go, the classroom, home, or with friends you always have to work together to accomplish the one thing you have to do," Ortiz said. You have to rely on someone with trust and friendship and if you don't have them, then you don't have anything."
