LVRR Volunteer Spotlight
The LVRR Kids Series started in 2000. During the first year about 60 kids participated in each event. Currently, over 500 children participate in each race. Since 2000 over 10,000 kids have participated in the Kids Series. The LVRR Kids Running Series is a free event. The only requirement is for participants to show up and be checked in by 9:30 a.m. That is a pretty good deal! We now have former Kids Series participants volunteering for various LVRR events. Several former participants have competed at the League, District and State levels in cross country and track & Field. Several have also earned LVRR scholarships. The success of the LVRR Kids Series is measured not only by the number and diversity of the participants, but by the many smiles and improvements made throughout the Series. The event has grown to be more than a running event, it is a day…
April Showers Bring May Flowers
Monthly report from Club President, Leslie Billowitch The May showers flooded our parks and brought hail storms to the area. We are hopeful that mother nature will give us a break and that we will have an enjoyable summer. Many of you joined us for the St. Luke’s Half Marathon, 5K and Youth Run in April. These races helped kick off our free running season. In May we had over 300 racers at the Summer Series, and over 550 kids at the Kids Series. Not bad for a local running club. They say it takes a village and I couldn’t agree more. We are a 100% volunteer based club, so we rely heavily on all of you to support the 20 races we run. We know that all organizations are feeling squeezed and that volunteers are getting burned out. The Board has talked about reducing the amount of races that…
Region’s Favorite Half Marathon Marks 41 Years in 2019
St. Luke’s Half Marathon celebrates its 41st year as a long distance running event in 2019, securing its place as one of the region’s oldest and most beloved long-distance road races.
2018 Kids Series Winners
Congratulations to everyone that participated in our 2018 Kids Series! Below are the Overall Award winners for the 11-14 age groups: 11-12 GIRLS 1. Angelina Klein 2. Nichol Nosal 3. Sarah Campbell 11-12 BOYS 1. Brady Hoffman 2. Logan Thrash 3. Ben Tobin 13-14 GIRLS 1. Ashely Ryan 2. Madelyn Hurst 3. Morgan Belisle 13-14 BOYS 1. Geoffrey Kleinberg 2. Jacob Orrico 3. Hayden Shiban Runners must have participated in 4 of the 5 races. Scoring is cross country format.
Kids Series T-Shirt Contest & Raffle Winners
We’d like to thank all of the children who submitted designs and slogans to be used for this year’s shirt. 2018 Design Winner: Emma Carlson, age 10 Slogan winner: Talia Fogel, age 11 The Raffle winners for 2018 are as follows: May 26: Jim Dawson, Zachary Lesher, Kalise Brown, Elliott Holmes, AbduBakarr Barnie June 16: Josh Breyer, Angela Li, Amelia Macky, Gabriel Polanco June 23: Sophia Benner, Nicholas Williams, Brody Waldenmayer, Hannah Roy
2018 Scholarship Recipients Announced
LVRR has a proud tradition of offering scholarships to students who are furthering their education at college institutions. The 2018 college recipients are as follows. Congratulations, and good luck as you prepare for your future careers! Tom Illick Memorial Scholarship – $2,00 scholarship Luke Smith – Bloomsburg University, Accounting Lauren Gerber – Lafayette College, Economics or International Relations LVRR Scholarship – $4,000 scholarship Mackenzie Heitz – Moravian College, Nursing Emily Deschler – Bucknell University, Cell Biology/Biochemistry (Pre-Med) Christopher Deschler – University of Pittsburgh, Bio-Engineering Ethan Bernstein – Washington & Lee University, Pre-Ped track (FYI Emily & Christopher are not twins but quadruplets!) Ed Thompson Memorial Scholarship – $2,000 scholarship Charlie Norelli- Gettysburg College, undecided Nicole Reinhart Memorial Scholarship – $2,000 scholarship No applicants, no scholarship awarded
Allentown Designated as Runner Friendly Community by RRCA
Neal Novak and Brian Patterson were very busy in June working tirelessly to certify Allentown as a Runner Friendly Community via Road Runners Club of America. We were notified last night of our new designation as an RRCA Runner Friendly Community. What does that mean? This is directly from the RRCA website: Runner Friendly Communities have shown that they meet the program’s criteria, which includes community infrastructure, community support and local government support for running. Each community has shown they have an infrastructure that can foster physical activity in a safe environment. They have a proven track record that organizations and businesses work together to promote running as a healthy exercise and sport. With the most important criteria being, there are positive relationships between the running community and local government. A big thank you not only to Brian and Neal, but to those we used as references and to the…
St. Luke’s Youth Run Contest
Each year, the St. Luke’s Youth Run holds a contest for the most students participating in the event from different local schools. The top three schools win cash prizes to be used toward their athletic program. This year’s winners were: 1st ($750) – St. Elizabeth Regional School 2nd ($500) – Bethlehem Christian School 3rd ($250) – Donegan Elementary School