REbeL will hold its fourth annual “Walk to REbeL” Saturday, May 10 at BVNW. The walk is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. and will feature a three-mile course, as well as food and drink, face painting, photo booths, REbeL’s signature whiteboard pictures and other activities available for participants.

“It’s a walk to rebel against stereotypes,” REbeL member sophomore Reeva Date said. “[REbeL members] do a lot of things in the school, like ‘Fat Talk Free Week,’ but the walk is something that we can do outside of school that still helps and it’s another way to just remind yourself that your body isn’t everything and you are perfect the way you are.”

REbeL sponsor Carolyn Potter described the walk as a fundraiser to establish new chapters across the Kansas City area and possibly expand into other states, as well as an effort to spread REbeL’s message of self-acceptance and a healthy body image.

“The Walk to REbeL is a great way for us to participate in exercise to really help our bodies and reward them with strength but also to celebrate ourselves for who we are,” Potter said.

Registration for the Walk to REbeL is currently open to anyone interested and will stay open on May 10 for last-minute registries, according to Potter. Prices are currently $20 for students and $25 for adults, with prices for each increasing by $5 this Thurs., April 11.

“Anyone is welcome to attend,” Potter said. “We would love for anyone and everyone to register to come to the walk because it really is for the whole community, it isn’t just for BVNW and it isn’t just for students- it’s for everyone.”

Potter said that fundraising is not required for the walk. She said it is primarily an option for students whose friends and relatives would like to support them and the walk but are not able to attend, allowing them to contribute to a participant’s fundraising funds as an alternative.

According to Potter, this year’s walk includes a new team option where students can sign up to walk as a group with their friends and family. In addition, the tee shirts that participants receive along with their registration will be changed this year after remaining the same for the three previous years of the Walk to REbeL.

“The only [other] difference will hopefully be that we have many, many more registrants,” Potter said. “We would love for this walk to be bigger and better than ever.”

As it is Date’s second year attending the walk as a member of REbeL, looks forward to spending time with her friends in an atmosphere she describes as positive and family-oriented, accompanied by weather that is expected to be sunny and rain-free.

“[Participants] should be really excited,” Date said. “They should be as excited as I am because I’m so pumped for the walk, and it’s not supposed to rain this year so I’m expecting it to be a lot better [than last year]. They should just expect a great time with their friends doing something that we’re passionate about and something that needs to be changed in society.”

Potter said the main goal of this event is to raise awareness for the pressures society puts on health and appearance in a healthy and uplifting way. She said she is most looking forward to seeing more people attend, as well as watching students’ younger siblings read the signs of positivity posted along the course in the hopes that REbeL’s message influences all especially kids while they are still young.

“Last year was rainy, but despite that, it was an amazing environment,” Potter said. “You are just surrounded by positivity all the time and it’s inspiring to see so many people there excited about making a difference in how we view our bodies and how we view our health. It’s just a really exciting event where we celebrate being ourselves and focusing on being healthy instead of focusing on what we look like.”