There are many ways to spend a Saturday
morning. For those who enjoy running in nature on a wooded trail or walking
with friends, all the while contributing to a community cause, this Saturday’s
Kelli’s 5K Track and Trail Run and Walk may be the perfect start to the
weekend.
To be a part of Team Kelli, join over 50
runners and walkers at 9 a.m. at the Windham High School. Registrations will be
accepted up to 30 minutes prior to start time with a registration fee of $20.
Windham students, St. Ann’s Episcopal Church youth, and seniors age 65 plus can
run/walk for free. Donations will be accepted.
According to the website, there will be
two courses that will occur simultaneously. One will be a timed and somewhat
challenging 5K trail that is used by the Windham High School cross country team.
This course is a rough pathway of steep hills, roots and bridges. The other
course will be a non-timed walk on the high school campus. Both courses will
end at the grassy knoll overlooking the high school.
Kelli’s 5K, hosted by the St. Ann’s
Episcopal Church, became an annual running and walking event in 2010, to
remember and honor Kelli Hutchison, a member of the church. Kelli passed away
at the age of 10 on February 16, 2010, of GBM brain cancer, an aggressive form
of cancer that most often occurs in adult men ages 50 to 70. Despite the
darkness and seriousness of the cancer – the main purpose and focus of Kelli’s
5K is to spread light, friendship and the art of living fully that represents
Kelli’s truest life expressions.
Kelli’s mother, Melissa Hutchison, said
of her daughter, “Kelli was full of light and happiness. She lived life very
fully and she never let her experiences get her down.” Melissa also shared
Kelli’s ability to create friends with everyone she met, being concerned about
other’s feelings and how they were treated.
“The most amazing thing to me was
Kelli’s ability to be a friend to absolutely everyone she met. If you were a
part of Kelli’s life, you were her friend.” Melissa, Mike (Kelli’s Dad), and
Cory (Kelli’s brother) hope for a huge turnout for this year’s special run/walk
to not only honor Kelli’s memory and raise funds, but as a way to meet new
people and perhaps make a new friend or two.
There are two charities in which the
funds will be distributed. Fifty percent of the proceeds from this event will
go towards improvements and upkeep of the Kelli Hutchison Memorial Playground
(the ladybug playground) located on the St. Ann’s Episcopal Church campus at
the corner of Windham Center Road and River Road. The playground was built to
not only honor Kelli’s memory but to be a “fun and welcoming place to enjoy the
spirit of childhood.” http://www.stannsepiscopalchurch.com/kelli-memorial-playground/.
The playground is not only open to its church members, but to the children of
the great lakes community as well.
The second portion of the proceeds will
go towards Windham High School’s Project Graduation. This year would have been
Kelli’s senior year, graduating in June 2017. Melissa pointed out that this
graduating class is not only missing Kelli Hutchison, but will also have a
vacant seat for Shane Donnelly, who died unexpectedly in May 2015. All project
graduations are exciting chemical-free celebrations that act as the bridge from
one chapter in life to the next. However, the Windham High School’s class of
2017 will certainly have an increased understanding of the importance of friendships
and a life lived fully and without reserve as they create their new life
journeys. 
For those who have not yet registered
for the run/walk and wish to do so, it is not too late. Bring a friend or two
and register before 8:30 a.m. The race begins at 9 a.m. For more information
about the event or to make a donation, visit the website at: http://www.kellis5k.com/
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