Community members of all ages begin the run. MNU was the title sponsor for the Jared Coones Memorial Foundation Pumpkin Run/Walk on October 8. Photo by Jennifer Christenson
Around 50 students, faculty, and staff joined together with the Olathe community for a 5K in support of a local cancer foundation. On Oct. 8, MidAmerica Nazarene University was the title sponsor for the Jared Coones Memorial Foundation Pumpkin Run/Walk at Blackbob Elementary School, where Jared attended.
The memorial foundation?s website tells the story of the Coones family. In 1998, 10-year-old Jared Coones passed away from Leukemia. His parents, Tom and Jayne Coones, founded the Jared Coones Memorial Foundation and started the annual Pumpkin Run/Walk. Tragedy again touched this family when Jayne Coones died from inflammatory breast cancer in 2006. This race is about remembering their lives and raising money for cancer research and treatment. The proceeds benefit organizations including the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, The Dream House, and Children?s Mercy Cancer Center.
MNU students Hannah McMillin (left) and Tanya Khvitsko (right) showing off their team MNU shirts. MNU was the title sponsor for the Jared Coones Memorial Foundation Pumpkin Run/Walk on October 8. Photo by Jennifer Christenson
Kelly Lawler, an MNU alumni working in the Marketing and Communication office, said that MNU is sponsoring this race because it shares similar organizational values with the Jared Coones Memorial Foundation.
?It?s a great opportunity for us to get out into the Olathe community,? she said.
She said that there were around 3,500 runners and 85% of them were from Olathe. Lawler said that something new this year was that the participants were given the opportunity to sign up for the Heart of America Bone Marrow Registry.
The MNU booth was set up with admissions information and face painting. Admissions representatives were also handing out inflatable thunder sticks. Other booths included local business and a food tent where participants could have a small breakfast after the race.
Professor Mark Brown was planning on racing, but decided to walk instead due to an injury. He said that the starting line was ?crowded, in a good way.?
Music professor Maria Harman said that she decided to walk because it was for a great cause. She said that she enjoyed walking with the MNU team of students, faculty, and staff.
?It was fantastic,? she said. ?It enjoyed the energy and excitement, and how multigenerational it was.?
The starting line was organized in waves and pace markers so that runners could be up front and walkers in back. 5K is the equivalent of 3.1 miles, and mile markers were set up with water stations. Sophomore Kaitlin Wertz got the best time in the Women 15-19 age range with 23:08. Freshman Rachel Harris got the second best time with 24:38 and 8 of the top 10 women in this age range were MNU students.
The all-female undergraduate members of the MNU team gather in front of the MNU booth. MNU was the title sponsor for the Jared Coones Memorial Foundation Pumpkin Run/Walk on October 8. Photo by Jennifer Christenson
Hannah Holy, an 8-year-old volunteer, said that her role was to help with the recycling bins.
?I wanted to help the world be a better place,? she said.
April Hansen is the Director of Annual Giving at MNU. Her daughter, Ally Hansen, was planning on walking with her school but walked with her mother on the MNU team instead. Hansen?s husband is a financial advisor and one of his clients is Tom Coones, which made the walk more personal for the mother and daughter.
?It was a beautiful day,? April Hansen said. ?It?s a great time of year for something like this.?
Ally Hansen said that she was glad she participated.
?It was tiring, but fun,? she said.
Source: http://trailblazer.mnubox.com/2011/10/10/community-joins-together-in-memory-of-cancer-victims/
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