ABC Run #166, for Heartland Head Start

 

October 3th was forecast to be rainy but the rain spared Sugar Grove Nature Center long enough for us to collect a fine total of $794 for Heartland Head Start. Thanks so much to the eighteen runners that were able to attend plus three that sent a donation. The rain held off long enough for everyone who ran less than nine miles to stay dry. Three of us pushed our luck and got drenched during the tenth mile.


Whitney Chesher and Autumn Wisz from Heartland Head Start kicked things off by taking a minute to thank us for took a minute to thank us for our generosity. Heartland Head Start enhances the lives of children and families who meet the federal income and eligibility guidelines in McLean and Livingston County. They do this by providing a comprehensive child and family development program for women receiving prenatal care, children ages 6 weeks to 5 years old and their families.  Over the years, we have completed 14 runs to benefit HHS, raising a grand total of $10,177.  Money raised has helped the agency pay for playground equipment, classroom supplies and various classroom projects.

Following the introduction by Whitney and Autumn, I took a minute to talk about Meg’s devotion to ABC runs and to thank everyone for their support over this last year since she passed. We then took a short walk to Imagination Grove to take the group photo in front of Meg’s Playhouse which was constructed using funds from Meg’s Memorial Fund.

Thanks to all who participated and donated and made this another great ABC run. Thanks to Lisa Sparks for making Meg’s coffee cake and to all who brought food to share (sorry, I didn’t notice who brought once). Thanks to good fortune, as Kirby Cheek saw a soaked $20 bill laying on the pavement thank to an anonymous donator (or maybe it was Meg).


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

ABC#183, for Scott Early Learning Center, 1-13-24

Image
  The weather was frightful but the run/hike at Parklands was delightful. Thanks to 15 participants (nine attended, six others donated), a cool $865 was donated to Scott Early Learning Center. This was the first run of the 20 th year of runs, so we chose to meet at Parklands Merwin Preserve, the site of the first ABC run held in January 2005. Five runners showed up for that initial ABC run and it was heartwarming to have four of us attend ABC#183 (the other three are Mike Heffron , Kevin Fahling , and Mary Ellen Schupbach ). It was a “Retro-Run”, so two of us wore the same jacket and one wore the same cap as in 2005. See photos below. After the run, we enjoyed snacks such as banana nut chocolate chip muffins ( Stacy Sheridan ), chocolate chip cookies ( Kevin Fahling ), and peanut butter cookies ( Larry Schumacher ). But one thing was missing – hot chocolate! I forgot to make some, but Tod Williamson saved the day! The total for all 183 ABC runs is $221,867, vastly more than w...
Read more

ABC#179/Multi-Sport, for Timber Pointe

Image
 ABC#179/Multi-Sport on May 20 was a great day. Thanks to 33 participants, $740 was donated to Timber Pointe Outdoor Center. We had to cancel the swim but it was a nice cool morning to run and to bicycle. Thanks so much to everyone who donated, attended, organized, volunteered, brought food, cooked, and enhanced the day with your enthusiasm. At 8:00, Lydia Gartner thanked us and told us about Timber Pointe’s programs. We than took a group photo and started the run. Some ran the road course (4 or 8 miles) and some ran trails. At 9:15, bicyclists took off for either 13 or 26 miles.   At 11:30, the cookout started. What a feast: grilled chicken breasts, brats, snacks, apple pie, coffee cake, cookies, banana bread, and beverages. Thanks to the chefs, Mike Johnson and Robbie Pratt . Also thanks to those who brought food. A partial list includes Central Illinois Masters Swim Team (brats, chicken breasts, snack), Lisa Sparks (coffee cake), Kevin Fahling (cookies), Rebecca...
Read more