Schools

The Affton 5 Charity Race Runs Tomorrow

More than 100 people have already signed up for the five-mile race organized by Rogers Middle School students to benefit one of their own classmates, who suffers from a neuromuscular disease.

Are you running The Affton 5?

The charity race named after it's length (five miles) and the number of Affton School District buildings it passes (the elementary, middle school, intermediate school, high school and district offices) kicks off Sunday. 

"The only way we're canceling is if a tornado is barreling down Mackenzie Road," joked Cathy O'Brien, a communications arts teacher at Rogers Middle School.

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Check out the race route in the interactive map above.

Since September, O'Brien, 3 teachers and 30 Rogers Middle's service learning students have worked to organize a race for a charitable cause.

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"We wanted students to make the decisions," said counselor Alice Hein, who helped plan the race. "We had them do everything."

Part of the planning included deciding where the money should go. One of the students suggested donating to the family of seventh-grader Mitchell Herndon, who spent weeks in the hospital as doctors tried to diagnose his neuromuscular symptoms.

See previous story: The Affton 5 Run: Middle Schoolers Organize Charity Race

More than 125 people have signed up for the race, some from as far away as Illinois. 

"We thought we'd be lucky to have 50 people and now we have 120 or more, which is really good for a first event," O'Brien said. "A lot of these kids have stayed after school and put in a lot of time."

Nearly all of the supplies—including food, cups, first aid supplies and water—were donated, so most of the race's registration fee will be donated to the Herndon family, organizers said. 

"We know we're going to be able to give them a nice donation," said O'Brien. The goal tomorrow is for a safe, fun race for all, she added.

If you go:

The Affton 5 starts at 8 a.m. at Rogers Middle School. If you have not registered, arrive at 7:30 a.m. Volunteers will be on hand for taping and first aid.


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