Growing pains and gains for local preteens

AmberLeigh Packard eyed the competition as she made her way around the track at Alki Middle School. She had heeded her coach’s advice and paced herself, so she finished the 200-meter event strong. For 9-year-old AmberLeigh, it was just another race. But to her grandmother’s generation, AmberLeigh’s dash toward the finish line was a victory in and of itself.