Heidi Run questions asked for an article in the Placer Herald to Run Feb. 6, 2014
1.
When did the idea of a run for Heidi originate?
Last summer
around graduation time I was talking with my friend Ali Murphy about Heidi not
getting to go to college and how I would like to start a scholarship fund in
her name. Ali suggested a run to generate
funds to keep the scholarship funded.
She said she had friends and a sister-in-law that helped start the Run
Rocklin in Memory of Matthew Redding and what a success that run has been. She
offered to help me get it going. Once we
mentioned it to others we had a great team of friends willing to help make the
run a reality.
2.
Who thought of the idea?
Ali Murphy, my friend
3.
What distances will the run offer?
5K and a one-mile
fun run
4.
Why was the William Jessup location chosen?
Once we decided
to do the run we thought of how much Heidi preferred XC over track and how it
would be great to have a run on a trail that she had frequently ran on. Parker
Daniels, the XC coach at William Jessup was on board and excited to support it
when my friend Sheila Hall approached him to ask him about it.
5.
Why was “Chasing the Sun” motto chosen?
We were trying
to decide on a name for the run and I loved the song “Chasing the Sun” by Sara
Bareilles. Every-time I heard the lyrics
I would think of Heidi. Two of my
friends had introduced me to the song because they thought of Heidi every-time
they heard it. We wanted a catchy name
like Run Rocklin and we wanted it to be fitting of Heidi. The name “Chasing the Sun, Heidi Run” just
felt perfect. The song is set in a
cemetery with the voices from the past reminding us to keep Chasing the Sun and
live like we are still alive and to keep trying. I feel like that is what Heidi is saying to
us. My favorite line is “so fill up your
lungs and just run”.
Also, runners
are often chasing the sun out on the horizon and they just keep going and never
actually reach the sun.
“You said, remember that life is
Not meant to be wasted
We can always be chasing the sun!
So fill up your lungs and just run
Always be chasing the sun!
All we can do is try
And live like were still alive!”
Chorus of Chasing the Sun by Sara
Bareilles
6.
Who is invited to participate in the run?
Anyone is
invited to run in the race. We are
hoping to have beginners that are trying to get in shape and make changes in
their life. I know Heidi has inspired
some people in the community to do just that.
We hope to have experienced runners that look at this as a
competition. We hope to have friends and
loved ones of Heidi out on the course running and walking and thinking about
her and what an impact she has had on their life. There will be people that never even knew her
but will soon become familiar with what a great girl she was.
7.
Are any high school running teams participating
as a team? We have
had a lot of support from both the Rocklin and Whitney XC and Track teams. Coaches Pereira and Eckman from Rocklin have
helped promote and encourage the runners to come out in their Heidi shirts and
run. I got a call from the Whitney
Soccer Coach and she said they were planning to support the run as well and she
was encouraging other teams to join in.
At Heidi’s passing there were many games, dance performances, races all
in her honor and there were even teams attending her funeral in uniform because
they were between games. We have felt a
lot of support from both schools and even Del Oro.
8.
Why was February chosen?We really
wanted the race on the Saturday closest to her March 2nd birthday
but Track season begins on March 1st with meets and we wanted the
runners at Whitney and Rocklin to be able to attend the race without a
conflict. We decided on Presidents day
because it was available with no sport conflicts. We think it is a good activity to do on a day
off from school.
9.
Why should people participate in the run? We
think it will be a fun event with a great sense of community. We also want it to be a celebration of
Heidi. March 22nd it will be
one year since she passed away and this run is helping her family and friends
through this difficult year marker. It
is a great way to invest in the running community by helping to fund
scholarships to Rocklin runners. Runners
don’t always get as much attention and scholarships offered as other sports
like football, basketball, soccer and such so we want the runners to get the
support and attention.
10. Are
there any post-race activities for participants?
We are excited
that the finish-line will have a live band playing. My friend, Mike Cahoon, is in a band called The
302’s. It is 4 FBI agents! The 302’s
have been awesome to offer to come and help make it a party atmosphere.
The finish line
will have Krispy Kreme donuts, Mr. Pickle Sandwiches, and The Pizza Place
pizza. Food alone at finish will make it
a party!
11. Has
the race gained any sponsorships?
We have had
overwhelming support. Here are our
sponsors and we hope that the community supports them. What is neat is most all our sponsors have a
relationship with Heidi.
Scandia Fun-Center is our lead sponsor and Heidi was the babysitter for
owner Steve Baddley’s family. Scandia is donating a VIP wristband to every race
packet. It is a $20 value.
Golfland- SunSplash where Heidi was a life guard for 2 years.
Prime-Wok where Heidi loved to eat.
Alexander-Martin
orthodontist, very close family
friends and our orthodontist
Aloha Endodontics , Heidi cleaned the office with her sisters, and family friends
Liz Hunter, Keller
Williams Realtor, been very generous
to our family
Rocklin Family Practice
and Sports Medicine: Dr. Harris, Dr.
Ooi, and Dr. Chima, Heidi’s doctor’s office
Nemecorp Silk Screeners, silk screener for Heidi’s uncles business is supplying
the shirts at cost.
Scott Yuill State Farm Agent
The Dailey Method, will be raffling a valuable gift bag
Strikes Bowling- raffle
Katie Hughes
Photography: Katie is the photographer that took all the beautiful
senior photos of Heidi that are professionally done. We are grateful to have them. Katie is
offering a gift bag for the raffle.
CX Fitness – cards in race packets
Crunch- cards in race packets
Steiber’s Sweet Shoppe in The Fountains will be the location for race packet
pick up
Paul Martin’s American
Grill:
each runner will get a $10 gift card in
their race packet
Mr. Pickle will be supplying sandwiches at finish line for runners
The Pizza Place will be supplying pizza for runners at finish line
Safeway is furnishing water at the finish line.
12. Are
any volunteers needed? If so, for what tasks? We will
have volunteers from the William Jessup XC team, friends in the community and
people from Heidi’s church. We have lots
of volunteers but people are welcome to email me if interested at
bpgwood@sbcglobal.net
13. When
and how did the Heidi running scholarships start up? 2014
Graduation will be the first scholarships to Rocklin High and Whitney High XC
runners planning to attend further education through the assist-a grade
programs at both schools. There will be
2 scholarships offered at each high school.
14. Is
the “student” registration only for RUSD or high school students? No, any
students. We have a 15-passenger van
coming from Utah with Heidi’s friends and family attending different
universities and they are students.
15. Are
there any age group awards for the run?
Age
groups: Both girls (women for older)/ boys (men for older)
8 and
under
9-12
13-15
16-19
20-24
25-29
30-39
40-49
50-59
60 and up
16. Do
other members of the Greenwood family like to run as much as Heidi did?
Heidi’s sister
Erin is a fantastic runner as well. She
made it to the State Meet this past year and feels like Heidi is with her when
she runs.
Running is a
big part of our family. We all like to
run and exercise.
17. What
about Heidi’s running really inspires or amazes you? When
Heidi was having some health issues her senior year of XC we were in and out of
the Drs. Office. In hind sight we now
know it was small blood clots due to a family genetic blood disorder that we
have discovered since she passed away.
While she was running cross-country her senior year she went from being
number 1 on the team to not even top 7 due to the health problems that we
couldn’t figure out. She was embarrassed
and cried about it but she kept running and trying her best. One of my saddest but proudest moments of her
life was watching her run in league finals at William Jessup and watching her
run as hard as she could and doing so poorly.
Several of us stood and watched her with tears in our eyes. I was proud of her determination to keep
going and keep her head up but it was frustrating and sad to not understand
what was happening to her running.
18. How
and when did Heidi begin running? When
Heidi was in Kindergarten we used to go on family runs and she would lead the
family. We called her our energizer
bunny because she just kept going and going.
That is when she started running but ran her first half marathon at age
14 and took 3rd place in her age bracket at the Country Music Half marathon in
Memphis Tennessee.
19. Why
did Heidi focus on running among other sports? Heidi
used to play soccer on a competitive team and enjoyed it but once she started
running in High School she decided XC was her love and her sport. She was good at it and loved it.
20. Will
Heidi shirts be sold at the race?
There will be
some FAITH, HOPE, HEIDI shirts available for purchase. We have another shirt for The Chasing the
Sun, Heidi Run race and people are encouraged to purchase those on the
registration web site prior to the race. There will be very few of those
available on race day.
21. The
Heidi shirts are beautiful! Who designed them?
The FAITH,
HOPE, HEIDI shirts were designed by bluecotton.com. They were designed for my RAGNAR team that
ran in a 200-mile relay in her honor at the 6 month anniversary of her passing
away. I love seeing those shirts worn
around the community and throughout the world.
My brother works for the Olympics and he and his wife plan to wear their
shirts at future Olympics and I plan to put those pictures on her blog. I encourage people to send me photos of them
in various races and places for me to post on her blog. It is fun to see her shirts everywhere. My friend was in southern Utah last fall and
ran into my sister-in-law at a hotel wearing the FAITH, HOPE, HEIDI shirt!
22. Does
the entry fee include the same Heidi shirts that people may order if they do
not want to run? Every
5K runner gets a shirt. There is a place
on the registration page to order the shirt.
23. Why
do you encourage families or individuals to participate? It will
be a low key, family friendly atmosphere with a strong sense of community and
many will be sporting a purple shirt in honor of Heidi
24. Are
strollers allowed on the course?
Yes but we ask
them to be in the back of the group so as to not interfere with the serious
runners.
25. Is
the race chip-timed?
Yes!
26. When
is the deadline for businesses to become sponsors?
It is too late
to sponsor by the time this is in print.
27. Best
contact information if people have questions about the race?
Paige Greenwood
bpgwood@sbcglobal.net
28. How
many people have signed up at this point?
210 as of today
29. How
are you promoting the race?
Flyers, emails,
Facebook, word of mouth, banners, signs in our sponsors windows and now Placer
Herald.
30. Is
there anything people should be mindful of for this race? (i.e. wearing purple
for running or bringing purple ribbons)
Wearing purple
is suggested! We hope to see a sea of
purple!
31. Is
there a fund still open for donations? If so, will it be at the run?
If someone
wants to donate there is a spot on the registration website but it doesn’t
allow them to unless they register for the run.
They don’t need to actually run but that is a way they can access it and
they would still get a shirt and running packet with goodies in it.
32. Anything
in particular you’d like to mention?
We would like to
thank everyone for the love and support we have felt this past year. It has been a very difficult year for our
family and we feel so much love and support from the Rocklin Community, Our
Church Community, and friends and family throughout the world. Thank for all the love and prayers you send
our way.
News10.com
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