The last person in the race crossed the finish line more than five months ago, but the final tally has just come in. The inaugural edition of the RunWild Marathon in May not only brought out 1,500 participants, but it also managed to raise a total of $70,000 for the Zebra Child Protection Centre in Edmonton.
That's enough to put a smile on Grant Fedoruk's face. The president of Leading Edge Physiotherapy – the sponsor of the event – says that everything about it was so successful that it only means bigger and better things for the sequel next year. Most importantly, he's happy to provide such a high level of support for a worthy cause.
"The Zebra Child Protection Centre … it's one of those things that's dear to our hearts, because kids are involved, and the nature of the work that's being done there."
The centre is the first of its kind in the country. It works to improve how communities respond to child abuse by integrating a multi-disciplinary community of police officers, lawyers, health professionals, government representatives, advocates and others to respond to child abuse and also provide assistance to the victims and their caregivers.
Barbara Spencer, chief executive officer at Zebra, was overjoyed with the good tidings.
"We were delighted … we had a fun day too," she stated, explaining that she and her staff had a great time at the event.
The donation will go to help the Child Support Services Programs.
"Those are programs that are directly related to helping kids and families navigate through the criminal justice system," she explained, adding that it includes preparing children to go to court.
Round two in 2012
Fedoruk announced that the date has now been set for the second running to be held on Sunday, May 6. It will include a five-kilometre, 10-km, half marathon, full marathon, and marafun kids program. Registration is now open at www.runwild.ca.
The 2012 marathon will also serve to benefit the Zebra Child Protection Centre, but it will share the proceeds equally with the St. Albert Senior Citizens' Club.
"It just went hand in hand with our philosophy at the clinic and it just made total sense to include them as our charity this year." said Fedoruk. "The senior citizens' club is one of those really feel-good stories where we can see the dollars going into a facility or into programs and things."
The organizers have set the goal of bringing in 2,000 participants to raise $100,000. He's confident that there won't be any problems reaching that new milestone and helping another worthy community group. He said that there is already a substantial amount of interest from those who came out in May. Plus, supporting a local charity is something St. Albert does well.
"The seniors' club has a lot of things on their wish list. The charities that we choose … we like to know that the money that we're raising goes directly to something that will see a result. We know that they're looking at doing a fairly substantial renovation."
"We know that we deal with a lot of different senior citizens and we're right behind keeping them active and involved in the community. These are our patients; these are the people we need to keep active in our society as long as possible."
All in all, RunWild was a wild success. Before the starting pistol had even been fired, it was listed in Canadian Running magazine as one of the country's top 21 half marathons.
Race director Anita Cassidy said that it showed that a St. Albert marathon could be done well and pay off in dividends for the whole city.
"We like to think that we made St. Albert proud, showcasing this beautiful city and its citizens, committed to community and health."
Fedoruk added that he was very thankful for the community support and corporate sponsorship that helped make it all happen.
Those who wish to help these two charities before RunWild 2012 can check out their websites at www.zebracentre.ca and www.stalbertseniorsclub.org. The Zebra Centre is hosting its third annual Black & White Diamond Disco at the River Cree Resort and Casino on Saturday, Nov. 12. The seniors' club is having a bazaar and bake sale this Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
