May 21, 2013
For immediate release
New event set for Juneteenth Festival, will benefit St. HOPE Public Schools
The Freedom Mile, the Sacramento Running Association’s newest event, offers runners a chance to race at a classic distance while helping St. HOPE Public Schools as part of the Juneteenth Festival.
An 8 a.m. start is planned for the June 15th event at William Land Park. Competition will be held in age groups ranging from 8 and under to 70 and older.
The race is part of the 12th annual Juneteenth Festival, a celebration of the Emancipation Proclamation signed in 1863 by President Abraham Lincoln declaring all those held as slaves to be freed.
The festival includes a parade, a talent show, two stages of live entertainment, a health/wellness pavilion, an educational theater, a golf tournament and food/ware vendors. The event begins on June 14 with a Gospel Under the Stars concert at 7 p.m., runs from 8 a.m.-6 p.m. on June 15 and concludes with the golf tournament on June 16.
All proceeds from the Freedom Mile are set to go to St. HOPE Public Schools, a public charter school system with a focus on students from low-income and minority backgrounds.
St. HOPE provides children with a high-quality, rigorous college preparatory education. PS7 (grades K-8) and Sacramento Charter High School (grades 9-12) provide personalized attention to their students, committing more time with an extended school day to achieve academic results.
Strict accountability, rigorous standards, high expectations, increased learning time and the active involvement of parents, students, teachers and staff are emphasized.
St. HOPE also operates Triumph Center for Early Childhood Education, a public preschool providing unique early childhood education to approximately 65 children. Oak Park Prep is the newest school in the St. HOPE family and started this fall with its founding class of 7th graders who opened the first stand-alone middle school in Oak Park since 1963. The four schools serve approximately 1,600 students.
“The Sacramento Running Association is proud to partner with St. HOPE Public Schools and the Juneteenth Festival to bring the inaugural Freedom Mile to Land Park,” said SRA Executive Director Ellen Moore.
“The Juneteenth Festival and St. HOPE Public Schools celebrate diversity, culture and opportunity. We are honored to be associated with both as the SRA strives to provide healthy opportunities to all Sacramentans through running and an active lifestyle.”
St. HOPE Superintendent Jim Scheible said he was pleased to partner with the Sacramento Running Association for the event.
“I’m really excited,” he said. “It’s an opportunity to have kids at an event focusing on getting them outside.
“It’s really going to be a positive event.”
The entry fee is $20, with kids 12 and under running for free thanks to Coldwell Banker. To register, visit www.runsra.org.
Competition is set for 17 age groups, with the top three in each receiving an award.
The course makes a loop through William Land Park, with the start and finish near Freeport Boulevard and 13th Avenue.
Participants and spectators are encouraged to park at Sacramento City College (3835 Freeport Boulevard).
The Sacramento Running Association is a non-profit organization dedicated to finding ways to encourage people of all ages and abilities to run. The SRA is committed to developing new, quality running events that appeal to a broad variety of runners.
Other SRA events include the recent Gold Rush 100k, the Folsom Blues Breakout Half Marathon on Oct. 19, the California International Marathon on Dec. 8, the Super Bowl Sunday 10k Run on Feb. 2 and the Credit Union SACTOWN Ten-Mile Run on April 6.
SRA beneficiaries include the American River Parkway, youth fitness programs, local running venues and aspiring young runners.