Our BOPLA "ROTrunners" – a terrific, athletic group

As part of a BOPLA campaign to encourage a healthier lifestyle, a few of our colleagues set up "ROTrunners" in 2007. The idea was to strengthen the solidarity among colleagues, and at the same to help them to get, and to stay, fit. The ROTrunners are a group of around 10 members from all sectors of BOPLA, and they normally meet once a week to run along predetermined routes. Under the leadership of Heike Buchholz, in the beginning the group was trained on a regular basis and brought to a level which allowed the team to take part in a very wide selection of runs in our region.

During that first year, 2007, there was also the first joint fun run, called "Gesund-beginnt-im-Mund“ (healthy starts in your mouth), held in Randringhausen. Other runs included the Easter "Paderborner Osterlauf", the "Wälle-Lauf" in Herford, and various runs in Berlin and Hamburg. Some of the ROTrunners even successfully took part in half and full marathons, and in the "Staffellauf der Wasserbetriebe" in Berlin.

We are delighted by the initiative and commitment shown by our employees, and we hope that this project will run and run for many years.