by Lauren Hollon Sturdy
Buckner International

The first-annual CiCi’s Pizza Barefoot Run, benefiting Shoes for Orphan Souls, was a huge success, with 315 runners participating on Saturday, Oct. 8, and donations still coming in.

“The turnout was wonderful,” said Julia Stark, program manager of Shoes for Orphan Souls. “It was much, much higher than we expected, and it was such a fun community atmosphere. It was great to see families come together and run together to raise awareness about the needs of orphans and vulnerable children who go without shoes.”

The event raised money to benefit children in Africa, and participants said they had a great time doing it.

“We received many, many compliments from people telling us how much they enjoyed the event,” said Rachel Garton, director of Shoes for Orphan Souls. “We also heard a lot of great things from the runners about how beautiful the running trails were at Andy Brown Park.”

The male overall winner was Clint Bell, with a time of 15:58.00. The female overall winner was Susan Whiting, who finished with a time of 19:53.00.

Several dozen participants ran barefoot, Stark said. Jason Hoofnagle was the male overall barefoot winner, coming in at 23:14.00. The female overall barefoot winner was Toni Marshall, with a time of 29:12.00.

“We look forward to hosting a race again next year and to building on the great support we received from the community,” Stark said.

To see photos from this year’s race, check out the race photo album on the Shoes for Orphans Souls Facebook page at www.facebook.com/shoesfororphansouls.