Running for radishes: Senior organizes fundraiser event

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Running for radishes: Senior organizes fundraiser event
The proceeds from the race will help the garden flourish. Courtesy | Collegian

Gardening and running are two of Hillsdale’s favorite activities, and senior Bryna Destefani has combined them in “Walk/Run for SPARC,” a combined 5k, 10k, and 1k scheduled for May 1 hosted by Psi Chi. 

“It’ll be the perfect break during finals week. No one is going to want to do homework Saturday morning” Destefani said. 

Destefani organized the event to support SPARC, St. Paul’s Ability Resource Center, a non-profit connected with St. Paul’s Lutheran Church that supports community members with developmental disabilities. This includes people with cerebral palsy, autism, Down syndrome, and other cognitive impairments and spectrum disorders. It offers art, music, fitness, and Bible study activities to help participants realize their full potential as children of God and enhance their quality of life. 

One of SPARC’s most beloved activities is its community garden. 

“The participants love, love, love working in the garden,” Destefani said. “They grow everything themselves, and then they put all the produce back into the community.” 

With the proceeds from her event, Destefani hopes to buy SPARC some more raised beds and a variety of seeds. 

Participation in the 1k walk costs $12 while other events cost $15 or $17 with a T-shirt. When Destefani began planning the logistics of the race, she turned to senior Sofia Krusmark for advice. Krusmark planned and orchestrated a half marathon on campus last semester. 

“There is so much that goes into planning a run,” Krusmark said. “From having sponsors to going to Student Federation and asking them for money, to being in charge of all the emails that go out to the runners and making sure that they feel ready for race day, to recruiting 80 or so volunteers, to contacting the police department and fire department. There are so many different components to organizing a race.” 

Though Destefani has not solidified the route yet, she plans to map out a flat path along the Baw Beese Trail, similar to the one Krusmark used. Destefani’s goal is to recruit 150-200 participants, which would garner around $2,500 in proceeds for SPARC’s garden. 

“Hopefully the SPARC participants can do the 1k and 5k walk options,” Destefani said. “That is why we want to use the Baw Beese path instead of Hayden. We want to have a short, non-hilly route that anyone can participate in.” 

Besides building up the SPARC garden, Destefani said that this event will mean a lot to SPARC participants because of recent COVID-19 restrictions on the program. Normally, St. Paul’s holds all sorts of events, like their annual Snowball, which Hillsdale students attend to hang out and form bonds with SPARC participants. However, all these events have been canceled due to COVID-19 this year. 

“Hopefully with an outdoor event, it will be safe enough for them to hang out with us,” Destefani said. 

Destefani added that, in a way, she is grateful to COVID-19, because it helped her meet SPARC members. She is holding the 10k fundraiser as part of her psychology practicum, something students normally fulfill with an internship. Since her internship was canceled, her advisor, Keri McArthur suggested she work with SPARC and organize a fundraiser. 

“She knew that helping people with autism was something I was interested in.” Destefani said, “So when my internship fell through, she thought this would be perfect. I have loved it. I only wish I could go in.” 

Though Destefani has been able to Zoom in to SPARC classes, she hopes that the 10k will create an environment safe enough that more students can get involved in spending time with and supporting SPARC. 

Krusmark, too, has high hopes for the race. 

“I think that last semester showed that these events are really needed on campus,” Krusmark said. “We were able to get more than 370 people outside running for the event and people kept asking me if we were going to do it again next semester. Now Bryna is doing it. Kudos to her. I really see a good turnout happening because people shared in the joy of it last semester.”