Downtown Dash chairman expects super run, extra fun
Don’t be surprised if you see Wonder Woman, Black Panther and maybe even The Flash on the streets of Little Rock on Saturday during the Junior League of Little Rock’s fifth annual Downtown Dash 10K/5K.
“This is our first year to have a theme, which is Community Service Superheroes,” says Dash committee chairman Elizabeth Griffin. “It’s to celebrate our super service to the community.”
Racing starts at 8:30 a.m. and runners are encouraged to dress up as their favorite superhero. The course winds its way from the start/finish line at the Junior League Building at 401 Scott St., through the River Market, past the Clinton Presidential Center, through the Quapaw Quarter, past the Arkansas Arts Center, south of Interstate 630 and back downtown. Runners in the 10K event will have twice the fun, as they will do two laps of the loop.
And speaking of fun, children who run the 1K Downtown Dash Jr. at 8 a.m. will get super cool capes. There will also be a bounce house, animals from Heifer International and other kid-friendly fun. Strollers, walkers and dogs are welcome to take part.
“It’s really a race for everybody,” says Griffin, who joined Junior League seven years ago. Last year’s Dash, she says, was the biggest so far with almost 600 participants.
The Downtown Dash is one of three Junior League fundraising events that also include the yearly Holiday House and sales of the Junior League Cookbook.
“It’s important that each is successful, otherwise we can’t keep doing what we’re doing,” says the 32-year-old Griffin, who works as a speech pathologist for Access Academy in Little Rock.
And what they are doing is volunteering “to benefit women and children in the community,” she says.
The Junior League of Little Rock is a nearly 100-year-old women’s organization with about 1,000
members that is committed to promoting volunteerism, developing the potential of women and improving the community, according to its mission statement. In 2010, the league initiated a 10-year plan to decrease childhood obesity, improve literacy skills among Pulaski County students, secure the league’s financial future and establish the group as Little Rock’s top source of female leadership development.
Last year was Griffin’s first on the Dash organizing committee.
“I had never been on the committee before, and I was asked to be chair-elect,” she says. “I spent most of that time on a crash course learning about how everything worked.”
This year’s marketing coordinator and committee chair-elect is 35-year-old Kara Wilkins of Little Rock.
“The importance of signing up and running the race is that it directly affects our programs,” she says. “We have to have money from the race to keep doing that. This isn’t a race where the proceeds go back into the race.”
Money raised through the Dash will go toward league projects such as Boosters and Big Rigs, which provides dental, vision and wellness screenings for children while also giving them the chance to see fire trucks, ambulances and other community vehicles up close; Kota Camps at Camp Aldersgate for disabled and nondisabled children ages 6-18; and the literacy program Little Readers Rock.
The race also aligns with the league’s health and wellness goals, says Wilkins, who works with the Delta Dental Foundation.
“It’s about empowering people in the community to take care of their health and take care of their fitness. They can come run and simultaneously help support our projects.”
Griffin concurs. “Downtown Dash fits our mission perfectly,” she says. “Decreasing childhood obesity is one of our main focuses, so we have the Downtown Dash Jr. 1K. It’s perfect.” Registration for the Downtown Dash 10K is $35 in advance, $40 on Saturday; the 5K fee is $25 in advance, $30 on Saturday. Junior Dash entry is $10 in advance, $15 on Saturday. For an extra $15, participants get perks like a catered brunch buffet, indoor restrooms and other bonuses. To register and for more information, visit jllrdowntowndash.racesonline.com.