ORWELL TOWNSHIP - Panthers, put on your running shoes!
The sixth annual Pink Panther 5K Run/Walk will soon be hitting the trails at the Northeast Bradford schools. Runners of all ages, and from everywhere, are welcome to join in.
The race is set for 10 a.m. March 23 at the schools. Organized by the Northeast National Honor Society, the Pink Panther will benefit Traci's Hope, a breast cancer support group in Apalachin, N.Y.
Registration fees are $20 if pre-registered by March 15 and $25 if registering on race day. There is a $60 family fee cap (four people). The first 150 registered get a shirt. To register, go to the school's home page at www.neb.k12.pa.us and click on the Pink Panther announcement, or pick up an entry form at the school. You do not have to be a resident of the Northeast school district to participate, and you may run or walk.
Sandy Morris, NHS adviser, reported about 75 people had signed up as of Friday. "This year is wonderful!" she said. The club's hoping for 150-200 entrants.
NHS Vice President Isaiah McPherson and President Sam Williams are helping organize the 5K.
With a laugh, Isaiah insists he's "not a distance runner."
"He's the runner!" he says of his friend. Sam was a member of the Northeast boys' cross country team that won first place in states this past fall, and he was the overall winner of the 2012 Pink Panther.
Overall male and female winners will get $25 Dick's gift card, cookies from Missy's Cakes and Bakes and custom-designed socks. The overall alumni winner will get a $15 gift card and the other prizes. Age group winners will receive cookies and socks.
"They're really cool!" Sam says of the pink and black socks.
The day also includes refreshments, music, door prizes and a kids' fun run.
The Triple Cities Runners Club will do professional timing.
Morris says the 5K course is similar to the cross country route, covering trails and roads around the schools.
The Pink Panther has aided Traci's Hope for five years now. The organization is named after Traci Gibson, a wife and mother of three who died from breast cancer in 2006. For more information on that group, go to www.tracishope.com.
