By Daniel Curtin
Hometown Weekly Reporter
Students were running for a good cause last Monday morning for Blake Middle School’s sixth annual mini-marathon.
The event began after science teacher Kelly Ruminski and two other Blake teachers were unable to complete the 2013 Boston Marathon due to the bombings at the finish line. They decided to try and help the families impacted by the bombings.
“We were stopped near the finish. So that year in June, we wanted to do something to raise money for the One Fund for all the families and people affected by the Boston Marathon Bombings,” Ruminski said. “We figured … what better way to raise money than to have a road race. So we made our on little mini road race.”
The event allows students to run, jog, walk or participate from the sidelines by cheering on their fellow students and teachers.
Ann Bowen, the mother of one of the students at Blake Middle School, believes it’s a great end of the year event for the kids.
“It’s fun to see the kids do something all together, and it’s the end of the year, so it is celebratory. But they’re also doing something for a good cause. It’s awesome,” Bowen said.
The Medfield community has embraced the event. More than 450 student and staff runners participated in the run, with over 60 student spectators and staff all along the 2.1 mile course.
The run took students around part of the school campus and through surrounding neighborhoods, where staff and the Medfield Police Department helped ensure the safety of participants and that the sixth running of the mini-marathon was a success.
Principle of Blake Middle School Nat Vaughn was at the finish line, cheering students on as they made the final push. Vaughn believes the event acts as a important culminating event for the community.
“From my perspective, it’s a great culminating event for the year and it represents what we try to foster for our entire school community of students, staff, and parents all coming together for one event that everyone can access and everyone can be a part of,” Vaughn said
This year, the money raised by the runners will be donated to help those at The Wounded Warrior Project, with many of the runners sporting red, white and blue attire.
Emily Morgan, a seventh grader at Blake, was participating in her second Blake mini-marathon, and enjoyed being able to do an event the whole school can get involved in.
“It was nice to run as a whole school and have something like this at the end of the year,” Morgan said.
Blake seventh grader Jake Grzeskowiak played the National Anthem on his electric guitar to kick the award ceremony off as the top five runners with the best times were awarded medals from each of the six waves.
For her part, Kelly Ruminski believes the experiences gained from the run can be a very valuable lesson to the students at Blake going forward.
“Philanthropy is one of the most important lessons you can learn at a young age,” she said. “To know that you can do something for fun, but also for a good cause, is a great lesson to teach early on.”
