MNU sponsored a team for the Pumpkin Run. Tanya Khvitsko, center, graduated from MNU in 2012 and ran with the team. Photo credit: MNU Marketing
MNU proudly sponsored and provided a team of runners for the the 14th annual Jared Coones Pumpkin Run last Saturday. MNU was the title sponsor of the run but was joined by many other sponsoring organizations such as the Olathe YMCA, DEG, and Pate-Campbell Properties. Approximately 50 students and staff members participated? for the cause on the MNU team.
The Pumpkin Run commemorates Jared Coones, a young Olathe boy who died in 1998 due to leukemia and his mother, Jayne Coones, who died in 2006 from breast cancer. The race raises both money and awareness for leukemia and breast cancer. The beneficiaries of the race are Children?s Mercy Cancer Center, The Dream Factory, and The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Jared?s father and Jayne?s husband, Tom Coones, is the founder of the race and an MNU alumnus.
?I choose to run this race because it was for a good cause that raised money for cancer research,? senior Mary Hopke said. ?It felt good to run.?
The course was a relatively easy 5k that began early Saturday morning at Black Bob Elementary School. Pre-race activities included giveaways and activities for children and adults alike. MNU admissions also provided a face painting booth. Before the race began, everyone gathered for a small assembly. Tom Coones spoke, Mike Gough prayed, and everyone sang the national anthem.
?Face painting kids brought joy to my morning as well as the other MNU admissions face painters,? said Victoria Atencio, an MNU student who volunteered at the booth.? ?It was a successful morning! My highlight was paining butterflies and caterpillars on kids? faces.?
Runners were all different ages and skill levels of running. Even kids participated in the 5k. Everyone was instructed to gather around a sign that reflected their average pace per mile as they lined up at the starting line. These divisions separated the runners into waves, spreading them out so everyone could run at their own pace. The first mile was very crowded but began to thin out as everyone settled into a pace or wore themselves out and finished by walking.
?The highlight of my day was the final stretch of the run,? said Berrick Lee, a Johnson County Community College student.? ?I was totally dead, but seeing the finish line and hearing all the cheers from the spectators made me want to go on forever!?
Source: http://trailblazer.mnubox.com/2012/10/16/mnu-sponsors-14th-annual-jared-coones-pumpkin-run/
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