Community Rallies Strong for 16th Lew Blond Run!
Tentative date for 17th Lew Blond Run is Saturday, May 20, 2017!
Watch a very special video of Lew Blond Run by Steve Grundy at
https://vimeo.com/169591264
Thank you to Itai Epstein for photos of the Lew Blond Run!
https://itaiphoto.smugmug.com/…/Collecti…/Lew-Blond-5k-2016/
Well over 1,000 people participated in the 16th Annual Lew Blond Memorial 5K Run, 1 Mile Walk, including racers, walkers, volunteers and families who supported this annual ALS fundraiser!
Master of ceremonies, Superintendent Dr. Brian Wegley welcomed Lew Blond's family and the community. He thanked and applauded the community for supporting this annual fundraiser, which has raised over $465,000 over the past 15 years to support ALS research, scholarships and school projects.
He enthusiastically announced the start of the race at 8:00 a.m. sharp; and was back to support the kids at 9:00 a.m. for the 1 Mile Run; and personally congratulated every winner during the awards ceremony.
A message from Lew Blond Run Executive Director, Dr. Nathan Carter:
"Thank you to everyone who helped to ensure that the race was successful - from staff, corporate sponsors and other volunteers, to our wonderful community-at -large!
"Our Lew Blond Run Executive Committee members should be commended on organizing a well run event- from start to finish! We also had our Administrative Team and a host of District 30 staff members supporting our efforts! A very special thank you to our Maple office team- Michelle Rosen, Lucy Kloss, Michele Pollina, and Betty Holzkopf! What a great day!
Lew Blond's memory lives on in our Northbrook/Glenview communities because of the many people who give of their time and energy to the Lew Blond Memorial 5K Run/Walk. From the heart...thank you!"
Throughout the year, while the Lew Blond Run Executive Committee makes plans for the annual Lew Blond Run fundraiser, the talk centers on sponsorship, t-shirts, food, water, and general organization.
These are essentials for hosting a successful event; however, an excerpt from a recent letter from Therese Blond Davis reminded us "It is extraordinary how the entire District 30 community comes together for this event, teaching students lessons that don't come from a book – the importance of caring and charity through the Lew Blond Run. We cannot imagine a more wonderful way to honor Lew, increase awareness of ALS and support research to fight this devastating disease."
The Lew Blond Run Executive Committee thanks this year’s generous Lew Blond Run sponsors for their support: 20/10 Engineering Group, LLC, Alpha Baking Co., Les Turner ALS Foundation, AXA Advisors/Jon Laven, Brightspark, CARA, Carter Crew, Character Counts! of Glenview, Jean Collebrusco, Corner Bakery, Costco, Dolins Group, LTD, Dunkin Donuts/Vishal Shah, Elements Massage, Glenview State Bank, Highland Baking Company, Hinckley Springs, Holzkopf’s Meat Market, Mesirow Financial, Monster Entertainment, Northbrook/Glenview School District 30, Ruck/Pate Architects, Sodexo Food Service, Sunset Foods, The Sullivan Family, The Wegley Family, and Whitehall North LLC.
A special and sincere "Thank you to our Northbrook Police for their protection on race day and ongoing support."
For more information go to lewblondrun.org. Thank you to all who support the Lew Blond Run!
Student Mosaic to Support the Lew Blond Run
A mosaic created by the faculty and Maple School eighth grade students was auctioned at the Lew Blond Run on May 21. Proceeds from the sale will be donated to the ALS Foundation.
Les Turner ALS Foundation Honors District 30’s Lew Blond Run with Volunteer of the Year Award
On May 18, in the 90 minutes it took for the Les Turner ALS Foundation to honor District 30’s Lew Blond Run with the annual volunteer of the year award, someone in the United States was diagnosed with ALS or Lou Gehrig’s Disease. In another 90 minutes, someone will die from this catastrophic disease.
When Northbrook/School District 30’s applied technology teacher Lew Blond was diagnosed with ALS in the late 1990’s, everyone rallied around him and his family, providing support on all levels. After he died, the first Lew Blond Memorial 5K Run/Walk, 1 Mile Run was initiated in 2000 by District 30 administrators, faculty and community volunteers.
For 15 years, the majority of the Lew Blond Run proceeds have been donated continuously to the Les Turner ALS Foundation, to help support research for Lou Gehrig’s Disease and the Stuart Rosen Transportation Fund. Stuart Rosen, who lost his life to ALS, was the husband of Maple School secretary and Lew Blond Run Executive Committee member, Michelle Rosen.
Eyes grew misty at Bernie’s Book Bank in Lake Bluff, as both District 30 and The First Bank of Highland Park were commended, honored and awarded glass statues after being named volunteer and corporate partner of the year. In addition, District 30 was named “longest third party organization to host a fundraiser to benefit the Les Turner ALS Foundation.”
Lew Blond Run Executive Committee Director and Maple School Principal, Dr. Nate Carter accepted the statue and thanked his committee members and District 30 administrators, faculty, and the community for their support of the event each year.
Les Turner Foundation hosts who presented the awards included Tom Boleky, Bonny and Harvey Gaffen, Dr. Scott Heller, Rich Hirsch, Ken Hoffman, Josh Newsome, and Cheryl and Alan Turner.
Also in attendance were District 30’s Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Brian Wegley, Maple’s Assistant Principal Betty Holzkopf, Lew Blond’s friend and Maple art teacher, Dawn Nettelhorst, Maple secretary Michelle Rosen, and former Maple Principal Steve Waitz, who initiated the Lew Blond Run. Lew Blond’s sister Barbara and her mother Mariette Blond were also at the ceremony, and thanked everyone for their support. Mariette Blond is 91 years old and has either participated or attended every Lew Blond Run.
Lew Blond Volunteer Award Photos Available
From Les Turner ALS Foundation: "Thanks to those of you who attended the Celebrating the North Shore Community Event last month, which honored District 30's Lew Blond Run with the Volunteer of the Year award. It was a pleasure to see all of you enjoying yourselves as much as we did. Check out the photos of the evening's celebration: https://www.flickr.com/…/lesturner…/albums/72157666651895374
