Bridge a Life, a non-profit organization that shares hope with abused, abandoned, orphaned, and neglected children and supports foster and adoptive families, announces its annual foster care awareness event. The 6th annual Super Hero 5K Race and 1K Fun Run will be held on Saturday, February 18th at Nathan Benderson Park, home of the world class rowing venue and community park. An ideal event location, and the more than 20 local organizations that will join Bridge a Life, provides the opportunity to raise awareness of the many needs of the children and families in the foster care system in Sarasota, Manatee, and DeSoto Counties.
There are nearly 1,500 foster children in the tri-county area. Foster care cases are managed by local licensing agencies, either the Safe Children’s Coalition or Florida Baptist Children’s Homes. “Though a safe home and stable family environment are important factors for these children, positive community involvement is also a key component,” said Danny Jones, President of Bridge a Life. Jones continues, “Many of these children come from very tough places and can be traumatized by the removal from their familiar surroundings. They will greatly benefit from any positive input they receive from those around them, including their community.” Your participation will show the children they are not alone and lots of people care about them. Knowing that they matter can make the difference between a life of continued hardship and a life of success. The Super Hero 5K Race is a super fun way to celebrate these children and their value, while also recognizing their struggles. There will be lots of family fun activities, including giveaways, food by Der Dutchman, raffle prizes, a selfie station, music, and of course plenty of Super Heroes! Prizes are awarded for the top three runners in each age and gender division, but also for Best Super Hero Costume, Best Super Hero Family, Best Super Hero Pet, Largest Super Hero Team, etc.
A 5K race and Fun Run provides a large scale platform to raise awareness for local children who have endured serious abuse and neglect, resulting in the removal from their homes. It also allows those interested in fostering or adoption an opportunity to gather information, ask questions, hear inspiring stories of hope, and find a way to connect with and support this special community of people. Not everyone is able to answer the call to foster or adopt, but everyone can do something to help support these vulnerable children. Participating in this race, as a runner or volunteer, is a great way to show support and be a voice to the voiceless.
Join the 600+ racers at 8:30 am for the 1K Fun Run or at 9:00 am for the chip-timed official 5K run with race results provided by Alta Vista Sports. Participants can register online at www.5KHero.com Register early for the best prices. Event registration and packet pick up will be held at the UTC Fit2Run store (140 University Town Center Drive) from 4 – 8pm on Friday, February 17th and again from 6-7:45am the day of the race at Nathan Benderson Park.
For more information on the race, please contact Jody Jester (941-306-8628 or jody@bridgealife.com) or visit the Bridge a Life website at www.bridgealife.com.
**MACARONI KID READERS GET A SPECIAL DISCOUNT! USE CODE MACKID FOR $5 OFF YOUR REGISTRATION. PLEASE SIGN UP BY JANUARY 31ST.
