Reason to run
St. Jude Memphis Marathon aids city with significant economic boost
The cause gives participants more reason to run, the improving event experience gives spectators more reason to watch, and the economic boost gives Memphians more reason to support it.
That’s what sets the St. Jude Memphis Marathon apart from standard marathon fare, said Richard Shadyac Jr., president and CEO of ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness arm of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
“We offer things that nobody else is going to be able to offer,” Shadyac said in an interview Tuesday. “You’re starting by running through the campuses of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and experiencing the higher mission of St. Jude. We intentionally try to make it very unique, and it’s a way to attract a broader audience and to continue to grow this event.”
To aid in that goal, St. Jude holds a post-marathon debrief where its representatives and community members discuss how to improve the event and, consequently, keep the fundraising amount and runner count climbing each year.
“We’re constantly learning,” Shadyac said. “That’s what we want to do with an event like this.”
St. Jude is “very focused on the event experience,” Shadyac said, with great music, interesting St. Jude facts and “interesting folks” in costume or with colorful signs populating the race route.
One marathon tweak this year is the finish line being outside AutoZone Park
instead of in it. Shadyac said St. Jude had concerns about stadium capacity this year and wanted to accommodate more participants.
Marathon numbers have ballooned since 2002, when St. Jude took over the event. That year, it raised $213,500 and had 2,900 registrants. In 2017, the marathon raised a record amount of $10.3 million and had 25,000 runners.
For Saturday’s marathon, St. Jude is hoping to raise around $11.3 million, Shadyac said.
Much of that comes via St. Jude Heroes, or participants fundraising at least $250 while training for the marathon. Of the 26,000 participants total on Saturday, 6,500 of those are St. Jude Heroes, he said.
Marathon projected to have $30 million economic impact
While the marathon is the largest single-day fundraising event for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, the marathon also draws in an eye-popping dollar amount for the area economy, too, Shadyac said.
Shadyac said the marathon will have a $30 million economic impact on Memphis, so he hopes Memphians “can give us a little grace” even if the event snarls traffic.
“You put it all together, with room nights to spending money here in the city, it quickly gets up there,” Shadyac said of the economic impact.
Lodging and dining for participants and spectators drives that $30 million amount. According to St. Jude, 60 percent of the 26,000 runners on Saturday are from outside the greater Memphis area.
Perhaps some of those visiting Memphis for the marathon will be inspired to return. Growth and development efforts in Downtown Memphis will only add to the marathon experience for these outof-towners, Shadyac said, with repeat marathon runners bound to notice new hotels and businesses on their routes.
“I think it’s a showcase day for the city of Memphis,” he said. “We’ll be running by some of the most important sites and attractions in our great city, so we put that on display.”
Contingencies in place for weather
As far as weather goes, St. Jude is “cautiously optimistic that it’s going to be a beautiful day,” Shadyac said. Per the National Weather Service, there is a chance of showers until noon Saturday in Memphis.
Still, Shadyac said safety is the event’s top priority and contingencies are in place for an inclement weather situation. The marathon was canceled in 2013 due to a snow and ice event (despite the cancellation, the event raised a then-record $8.2 million).
“I made that decision because I definitely wanted to be a great partner, and I did not want to tax very important resources in this city that could potentially be used to save lives and make sure people were able to get to hospitals, warming stations and things like that,” he said.
Saturday’s marathon isn’t expected to run into that sort of trouble, though, and St. Jude is ready once more to run an event raising awareness of the hospital and its goal to save children from lifethreatening diseases like cancer.
“I think people like to run for a reason,” Shadyac said. “I think to many people, they love to support the mission of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. It’s an opportunity to celebrate for those of us who are blessed with good health to be able to give back to those who unfortunately don’t have good health.”
Max Garland covers FedEx, logistics and health care for The Commercial Appeal. Reach him at max.garland@commercialappeal.com or 901-529-2651 and on Twitter @MaxGarlandTypes.