10K Race 4 F.I.S.H. set for next weekend
It’s that time of year again to lace up your running shoes and hit the pavement to help raise money for F.I.S.H. of SanCap during the 8th annual 10K Race 4 F.I.S.H.
Ed Ridlehoover, chair of the race, said F.I.S.H. decided they needed to have a little more punch for the organization, which led to the birth of the annual 10K race.
“It is something that hadn’t happened on the island before,” he said, which led to Joel Soobitsky starting the race.
Last year the race attracted 524 registered runners from all over, the most the 10K has ever attracted.
Ridlehoover encourages individuals to participate because funds are needed to support the island.
“A lot of people have begun to think of this as the first event of the season,” Nancy Bender, chair of the race, said.
This year the 6.2-mile race will be held Saturday, Oct. 15, at 7:30 a.m. If registered by Oct. 8, the entry fee is $30, and participants are guaranteed a T-shirt designed by Dave Horton. The fee increases to $35 if registered between Oct. 9 and Oct. 14. Registration is $40 on race day.
To register online, visit www.ftmyerstrackclub.com. Entry forms can also be printed from www.fishofsancap.org, or www.ftmyerstrackclub.com.
Bender said the Fort Myers Track Club organizes the race portion since they have all of the equipment for the race. She said they provide the ChronoTrack Big Tag, which keeps track of the runner’s time.
“We couldn’t do it without them. They are absolutely vital,” Bender said. “They come in every year and set it all up, the race part.”
Everyone who crosses the finish line will receive a medallion. Ninety-eight awards will be handed out for male, female and the different age groups. Gold, silver and bronze sand dollars will also be handed out for 15 age categories for both male and female ranging from 9 and under to 70 and older.
Food and drinks – bananas, bagels and cream cheese, fruit, as well as coffee, water and orange juice – will be available after the race concludes under a large tent at the park.
The race committee provides a helping hand in making sure everything runs smoothly. Bender said they are responsible for the T-shirts, goodie bags, prizes and awards. The goodie bags has such items as coupons for island businesses and restaurants, a water bottle, a Sanibel and Captiva Chamber of Commerce magazine and map, as well as a small bag of shells from She Sells Sea Shells in honor of their 40th anniversary.
“We have over 125 volunteers,” Bender said, adding that they stand throughout the race route.
Ridlehoover said the volunteers also man the three tables throughout the race route.
“We’ve had people tell us that they are really surprised by the number of people that volunteer for something like this,” he said.
Bender added that they are thankful for the service clubs – Kiwanis, Lions, Rotary, Zonta and the Optimist – for volunteering.
The race will begin adjacent to the Sanibel Community Park. The route will continue down Periwinkle Way to Casa Ybel Road to West Gulf Drive to Tarpon Bay Road. Runners will then go down Tarpon Bay Road to Island Inn Road before turning around. From there the runners will head back to the starting point and cross the finish line at Sanibel Community Park.
Periwinkle Way will be closed briefly for the start of the race and Tarpon Bay Road will be closed throughout the race.
“The city has just been wonderful,” Ridlehoover said to work with. “We meet with them and everyone is on the same page by the time we are done with the meeting.”
The funds raised, which are a combination of registration fees and sponsorships, goes towards all of F.I.S.H.’s programs. Ridlehoover said this year they had around 70 sponsorships from all island businesses, a few of which increased their sponsorship level.
“The last few years we have had right around 70,” Bender said of the sponsorships.
The amount of sponsorships they receive from island businesses every year and the number of volunteers from all the service clubs on the island, as well as residents, Ridlehoover said is what makes the race.
F.I.S.H. stands for food programs, island based, social services and helping hands. In 2015, F.I.S.H. impacted the lives of 1,478 households. “If they live on the island, or work on the island, we will help them out,” Ridlehoover said. “There are people out here that live here that are hungry. They are older and can’t afford food, or need help getting themselves organized with someone checking on them quite often.”
The food programs in 2015 provided 87,793 pounds of food to 350 households; 1,639 backpacks distributed to 65 children and 2,216 meals delivered to 34 households.
Volunteers provided 6,750 hours of service and drove 29,205 miles on behalf of F.I.S.H. for the island based portion of the organization.
The social services also had an impact in 2015 providing 1,069 reassurance calls to vulnerable island residents; 206 households benefited from F.I.S.H.’s social workers counseling and managing their cases and 276 medical and/or essential trips for clients were made by volunteers.
Last, but not least, 100 households were assisted with emergency rent and/or utilities; 50 households were assisted with medical, dental, healthcare and/or prescriptions; 62 youth scholarships for summer camp, skills building and/or educational trips were provided and 12 adult scholarships were given for continuing education through helping hands.