WELS Kids Marathon Update #6

We are just a few days away from the final mile of the 2011 WELS Kids Marathon. The committee is working feverishly getting the final details in order, picking up supplies, and making sure everything on track.

Final Mile Timeline

6:00PM - Packet Pickup begins. Please plan on arriving no later than 6:30PM as there will be a lot of others in line and we want to make sure the races begin on time.
6:30PM – Special Guest Appearance
6:40PM – Group Warm Up
6:55PM – National Anthem
7:00PM – Race Number 1 for kids grades 4 and under.
7:15PM – Race Number 2 for kids grades 5 and over.
7:30PM – Prize Drawings

Ultimate Challenge

For those of you who completed the Ultimate Challenge, congratulations! 52 miles and 52 books are very impressive! This year, we will have a small reward for each of you who completed the Ultimate Challenge. We will also have a special drawing for only those who completed the Ultimate Challenge. Please make sure you sign the Ultimate Challenge Sheet at Packet Pickup and fill out your special Ultimate Challenge Raffle Ticket. Good Luck!

Make It Happen

This year’s WELS Kids Marathon charitable contribution will be to the Jenny Crain Make it Happen Fund. In a special appearance, Jenny will be coming to our final event and meeting the kids. Please make her feel welcome. We will be making her an honorary WELS Kids Marathon Finisher. Please make sure you sign the banner we will have for Jenny. Also, please consider a personal donation to the Make It Happen Fund, we will have a jar set out if you wish to donate.

Prizes

In order to be eligible for a prize, you need to be present at the Final Mile. Once you receive your race number, make sure you detach the bottom of the number as this will be your prize drawing ticket. We will be giving prizes from:
The Milwaukee Bucks
The Green Bay Packers
The Athletes Foot in New Berlin
Performance Running & Fitness
Nike
Barnes & Noble
The Pettit National Ice Center

Media

If you have any connections to the any of the local media, we would love to invite them to cover our final event. Please make an invitation and let me know if any information is needed.

Directions

Please see the link toward the top right of the page for directions to the final event or Please Click Here.

Volunteers

Thank you to everyone who has volunteered to help us at the final event. If you have volunteered, please plan on showing up no later than 6:00PM.

Thank you

I would like to personally thank everyone for joining the 2011 WELS Kids Marathon. It is a real pleasure to share my love for running and reading with the future of America. Exercise for your body and your mind is so important and is usually the first thing to drop out of our busy lives. Please make time to exercise. And sit down and read a good book. If I am a little slow at the final event, it will because I am running my own marathon Saturday morning at the Eisenbahn Marathon in West Bend. As I pass each of the 26.2 miles in the morning, I will be thinking of all you awesome kids who will be completing your marathon that evening.

Thank you,

Bill Schneider
WELS Kids Marathon Director

WELS Kids Marathon Update #5

Group Fun Run

I just wanted to remind you all of the Group Fun Run taking place this Friday at Bluhm Park in Muskego at 6:30PM. Here is a link to a map and directions to the park. http://mapq.st/pU4DYl This will be our last group fun run before the final event as the Fun Run scheduled for Sunday, August 14th has now been cancelled. Please join us in Muskego for fun, a run, and fellowship. Everyone is welcome.

Name the Race Contest

We have received only a couple entries for the Name the Race Contest. We need your ideas! Please send in your ideas to welskidsmarathon@yahoo.com. If we do not receive more suggestions, we may need to delay the new name announcement.

Volunteers

We are looking for a few people who would be willing to help out at the Final Mile Event on Saturday, August 27 starting at 6:00PM. We need help with the registration table, food preparation and serving, course marshals, and handing out medals. It takes a lot of volunteers to make the final event a fun and safe event for the kids and to create memories they will have for years to come. If you are willing to help out, please email us at welskidsmarathon@yahoo.com. Most volunteer jobs allow you to still watch the kids run!

Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns.

Thank you,

Bill Schneider
WELS Kids Marathon Director

WELS Kids Marathon Update #4

Make It Happen Fund

This year’s WELS Kids Marathon Charity Donation will be to the Make it Happen Fund. I wanted to share with you the “Who” behind the Make it Happen Fund.

Jenny Crain is a runner who attended Franklin High School in the 1980’s. After college, she grew into one of the best marathon runners in the United States. In 2005, Jenny represented the United States in the World Track & Field Championships held in Helsinki, Finland. She ran a time of 2:39:02, good for 36th place.

Jenny Crain winning Milwaukee's Al's Run

Jenny is a very friendly and welcoming runner in the Milwaukee area. I have personally met her many times at local races that she runs even though she was world class runner. She loved running locally and supported all the local runners.

In 2007, Jenny was training for her fourth US Olympic Marathon Trials. She was on a run on the east side of Milwaukee when she was unexpectedly hit by a car just before finishing her run. She received major injuries to her body and her brain. She survived though. And with an Olympic spirit in her heart that would win gold a thousand times over, she began the biggest training of her life, recovery. Over the last 4 years, she has worked her way up to being able to walk with the aid of a walker. Last month, she walked 1 mile at a local charity run on her behalf. She has a long way to go.

Team Jenny at the Brewers Game, Jenny sitting in the middle.

Many local runners have now supported Jenny the way she supported them over the years. The Make it Happen Fund was set up to help Jenny with her massive medical bills. Now the kids of the WELS Kids Marathon are supporting Jenny too! This year, the WELS Kids Marathon will make a donation to the Make It Happen Fund.

This fall, at the Lakefront Marathon in Milwaukee, Team Jenny will be attempting to break a World Record for the most runners tethered together running a full marathon. I have been graciously invited to join this team allowing me to share this wonderful story of survival with you all. 75 of us will be tethered with a rope all running the whole 26.2 miles together. Runners of all abilities are now training to accomplish this World Record. Please follow our journey as we support Jenny.

If you feel inspired to make a personal donation to the Make it Happen Fund, please follow this link.

If you would like to learn more about the Jenny Crain Story, here is a link to a wonderful story published in Runner’s World Magazine. Well worth the read.

Thank you,

Bill Schneider
WELS Kids Marathon Director