STARKVILLE — Racers, walkers and swimmers are gearing up for a scenic trip through Starkville and Mississippi State University’s campus on Mother’s Day weekend for the inaugural Kites and Rainbows Run, all in an effort to raise funds for Friends of Children’s Hospital.
Josh Foreman, a member of the event’s committee and an instructor at MSU, reflected on the purpose of the event.
“There’s no better cause than to help sick children get well, especially in our home state,” Foreman said. “… It’s a win-win because we raise a lot of money, and Starkville gets a fun event.”
The Kites and Rainbows Run will feature a 10K run, a 5K walk or run, an aquathlon and a kids fun run Saturday morning. All proceeds of the event will go toward Friends of Children’s Hospital, a nonprofit which works to support the Children’s of Mississippi hospital in Jackson.
Friends of Children’s Hospital funds projects at the hospital, such as the Child Life program, which helps children and families cope with hospitalization and illness. They also fund new bedside technologies, renovations to the infusion sites at the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders and special events for the children and staff.
Blair Gunter, events and community relations manager for Friends of Children’s Hospital, said this event is vital to their cause.
“This race solely benefits Friends of Children’s Hospital, and it is serving as one of our most vital fundraisers this year in our efforts to continue to support them and the many projects and events that we’ll do for the hospital in the future,” Gunter said.
A warmup for the races will be held at about 7:40 a.m. in The Junction and will be led by Miss Mississippi Becky Williams. At 7:50 a.m., the 800-meter swimming portion of the aquathlon will begin in the Sanderson Center.
The 10K and 5K courses will begin in the Junction at 8 a.m. and will take racers past landmarks through campus and Starkville.
Both courses will loop around the Drill Field and Lee Hall, go past the Sanderson Center and Chadwick Lake to Dudy Noble and the Hump. Here, the 5K course diverges to the Chapel of Memories and leads back to the Junction. The 10K course will continue past the Hump all the way to City Hall, through the Cotton District and back toward the Chapel of Memories and finally to the Junction.
The Kids Fun Run will start in the Junction at 9 a.m. Former MSU quarterback Nick Fitzgerald will lead children down Lee Boulevard and around the Drill Field to finish back at the Junction.
Foreman, who was running the course himself Wednesday afternoon, is looking forward to the inaugural race being hosted on MSU’s campus
“When do you ever remember a 10K and a 5K on Mississippi State’s campus?” asked Foreman. “It’s the most beautiful place in Starkville, but yet, there’s never a 10K on the campus until now. … So the whole run is geared to be not just a physical challenge, but a way to appreciate our beautiful campus, our city and our community.”
Awards will begin at 9:30 a.m., and the event is scheduled to conclude by 11:30.
So far, about 450 racers are registered to participate, though Gunter says she hopes to see between 550 and 600 racers Saturday morning.
“Their participation, their fundraising and their volunteerism, no matter what they’re doing at the run, they are truly making a difference,” Gunter said. “… We couldn’t do it without all of them.”
The Junction will also be lively with music and children’s activities including two bounce houses, cornhole and ring toss and an array of food and beverage vendors such as Smoothie King, Arepas, MAFES ice cream and Domino’s.
Gunter said they hope to raise $85,000 during the event. As of Wednesday afternoon, they have raised $68,940.
Racers can register for the event until May 10 on the Friends of Children’s Hospital website, though the aquathlon event is no longer accepting participants. Registration for the 10K run is $60. The 5K run and walk both cost $50 to register, and the fun run costs $30. Participants can also pay $30 to register as a Children’s Champion to donate to the cause without breaking a sweat.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 44 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 44 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
