Nonprofit GirlTREK mobilizing to extend lives of Black women

ATLANTA - There's a national movement that's working to reverse a very disturbing trend.

According to the nonprofit GirlTREK, Black women are living 10 years less than the generation before them. The organization is now taking new steps to extend lives.

"Black women are dying at a higher and faster rate than any other group in the country from preventable disease," co-organizer Vanessa Garrison said.

Near a hidden trail in Chamblee, women from across the country gathered with one mission in mind - encouraging Black women to take to make their lives better.

Friends T. Morgan Dixon and Garrison started GirlTREK in 2010.

"We had a vision that we could inspire a million black women to inspire their daughters and reclaim the strengths of their neighborhoods through walking," Garrison said.

And they did. Since the group began, GirlTrek says its membership has exploded to 1.3 million participants globally.

Dixon and Garrison say they want to reach 10% of the total population of Black women in the country so they can tackle the problems that plague them most.

"Inactivity - we're not moving enough. Isolation - we feel lonely. Injustice - the systems are not supportive enough for us to live longer," Garrison said.

It's a journey to turn that around, one step at a time.    

The group is now launching its Joy and Justice Campaign and is using the epicenter of a pivotal movement in civil rights history at the headquarters for its mission.

"Last year, we bought Dr. King's office in Montgomery, Alabama. It was the headquarters for the Montgomery Bus Boycott. We're going to use it as a staging ground for us to launch a health campaign to go door to door to make sure our neighbors are OK," Dixon said.

It's a legacy they hope to pass on for generations to come.

GirlTREK has several events scheduled in Atlanta and across the country, including one on Saturday.

You can learn more on the organization's website.