SUBMITTED NEWS RELEASE
Registration is now open for the wildly popular Reno Orthopaedic Clinic ‘Run for Education,’ which will take place on Sunday, Oct. 17 at Damonte Ranch High School in south Reno. All of the proceeds generated from the run, now in its sixth year, go directly to the Education Alliance of Washoe County to help support the academic and fitness needs of Washoe County School District students. Last year’s event attracted approximately 3,100 participants and raised $165,000 from registration and sponsorships. In all, in its first five years, the ‘Run for Education’ has raised a total of more than $880,000 for local schools and students and organizers hope to cross the million-dollar mark this year.
For the first time since the inception of the ‘Run,’ the Reno Orthopaedic Clinic (ROC) will be the title sponsor and is handling the production of the event. ROC brings new insight and direction and is working with other presenting sponsors, Yamana Gold, Microsoft Licensing and Walmart, to ensure a fun, successful event. All of the proceeds generated from the run, go directly to the Education Alliance of Washoe County to help support the academic and fitness needs of Washoe County school kids.
“We are proud and honored to have the opportunity to be an integral part of an event that promotes health and fitness and benefits so many of our area’s youth,” said Dr. Eric Boyden, president and orthopaedic surgeon with the Reno Orthopaedic Clinic. “We are working hard to ensure the event continues to get bigger and better, providing all levels of participants – from elite runners to families and school kids – a fun, affordable way to spend an autumn weekend.”
Thanks to proceeds from this event, the Washoe County School District and the Education Alliance have been able to implement two new programs designed to promote health, wellness and learning for northern Nevada students – the Kids in Motion (KIM) Program and the Passport Program.
The Kids in Motion Program provides money to participating schools in the form of grants that help schools purchase fitness equipment, fund field days, support running teams, or provide formal physical education instruction. Over the previous five years, the ‘Run for Education’ has awarded more than 190 grants worth $414,135. This year, elementary schools that have 20 or more students participate in the ROC ‘Run for Education’ will receive a KIM grant of at least $500 for their school.
The Passport Program assists K-12 students who need additional assistance to help them meet educational goals. Over the past five years, the Run for Education has benefited more than 5,000 students through this program, which meets an academic funding need that was specifically identified by the Washoe County School District.
“This event is a great opportunity to educate our region about two of the more pressing issues facing our community; a growing lack of health and exercise among our young people and a rapidly increasing need for funding to support student academic achievement,” said Denise Hedrick, executive director of the Education Alliance. “Our goal is to focus on raising funds so our students can have access to more resources that allow them to lead healthier lifestyles and has become an extremely successful way to rally the community around these important causes.”
The ROC ‘Run for Education’ winds through the streets of south Reno’s Damonte Ranch area and consists of several races: a 5-kilometer run and walk, a 10-kilometer run and a half-mile fun run just for children in kindergarten through sixth grade. Cash prizes are awarded to the first, second and third place finishers in both the male and female divisions for the overall 5k and 10k run.
As part of the festivities each year, the run awards the top three participating elementary schools with cash prizes. Last year’s winners represented highly involved local schools that worked hard to prepare for the event and helped bring awareness to funding education programs related to fitness and physical education. Rita Cannan Elementary School took first place, with 165 participants, and was awarded the “Run for Education Traveling Trophy” and $2,000 to use towards fitness and physical education programs. The second place award of $1,500 went to Echo Loder Elementary School who had 101 participants and the third place winner, receiving $1,000, was Bud Beasley Elementary School with 78 participants.
After the race, there will be a variety of exciting entertainment and fun games for everyone. Activities include bounce houses, a climbing wall, basketball, football and golf. Additional activities and entertainment will continue to be added leading up to race day.
The Reno Orthopaedic Clinic ‘Run for Education’ takes place on Sunday, Oct. 17. Registration is required and there is a discount for participants who register before Oct. 9. All participants will receive a t-shirt and complimentary gift bag.
For more information on the race, training tips or to find out about sponsorship and vendor opportunities, log onto www.washoerunforeducation.org or call Leann Pinguelo (775) 326-5003. For more information on Education Alliance call (775) 353-5533.
About Reno Orthopaedic Clinic (ROC): ROC’s physicians are nationally recognized leaders. With 15 orthopaedic surgeons, 2 physiatrist covering orthopaedic subspecialties including spine, hand, joint, foot and ankle, sports medicine and trauma, ROC offers industry leading orthopaedic solutions including therapy, pain management and MRI for patients of all ages and lifestyles and operates 2 offices in Reno, with offices also in Fallon, Elko and Winnemucca. ROC is the only orthopaedic clinic in northern Nevada with three fellow-trained trauma surgeon specialists and maintains an on-call physician every day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. For more information on ROC, please visit www.renoortho.com.
