2nd annual event set for Saturday, Nov. 8
* Event Facebook page
* Event website
* RCAA Facebook page
By Kevin Spradlin
PeeDeePost.com
Better listen to Grandma.
Margaret Butler pleaded with those who knew Allison Butler to sign up for the 2nd annual Allison Butler Memorial 5K, craft an item for the online auction, become a sponsor or simply make a donation.
Any action, Margaret Butler said, will benefit the Richmond County Animal Advocates and go a long way in keeping Allison’s memory alive.
“You will save countless furry lives and help honor the memory of a very special lady — Allison Butler — my precious granddaughter,” Margaret Butler shared on her Facebook account.
Allison died at the age of 17 in November 2012 when the vehicle in which she was a passenger crashed on Aslington Street in Rockingham. Friends and family members organized the inaugural Allison Butler Memorial 5K run/walk at Hinson Lake in Rockingham a year later. The event raised $4,312 for RCAA, a nonprofit aimed at helping dogs and cats in Richmond County.
This year’s event is set for Saturday, Nov. 9 at 10 a.m. at Hinson Lake. Organizers have added a Doggie Dash as well.
While the 5K (3.1-mile) run/walk completes two circuits of the inner loop around Hinson Lake, the Doggie Dash offers humans and their leashed canine companions a 1-mile out-and-back course in an untamed format.
Prizes for the Doggie Dash will be awarded to the top three finishers. In the 5K, prizes will be awarded to the top overall male and female and Masters (40-plus) top three male and female in the following age groups: 9-and-under, 10-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69 and 70-plus.
In addition, special awards will be bestowed upon the oldest and youngest finishers.
Last year’s first-year effort attracted 109 5K finishers. Kyle Butler, 26, won in 18 minutes and 27 seconds while Rosemary Baxley, of Hamlet, led the women’s field in 24:51.
Packet pick-up and race-day registration begins at 8 a.m. on race morning until 9:45 a.m. The 5K begins at 10 a.m.