This Saturday, area elementary school children will complete a marathon, exhibiting health and fitness.
The children started the marathon a few weeks ago, running a mile at a time in their schools, said Henry Helton, the public information officer for the city of Claremont. They have already run 25.2 miles. The final mile will be completed before the start of the Claremont Christmas Parade.
Nearly 550 children from 11 elementary schools are participating in the marathon. The school with the most children competing will get money to use for school needs.
The Kids Marathon began five years ago, when area physician Dr. Mark Hawkins decided to start it. His clinic is across the street from St. Mark's Lutheran Church. A few years ago, he saw a kids marathon.
"I exercise a lot, and I want my kids to, too," he said. "This is a way to get the schools motivated, and the schools get some money."
Hawkins' primary goal is for the children to feel comfortable with exercise.
"It's a confidence builder for them to do this. We want them to feel comfortable with exercise and running, so when they get older and may gain weight, they'll feel comfortable running for exercise," he said. "The goal is to get people moving, to get confidence in kids with running. It's all about being healthy."
Children will receive a medallion when they cross the finish line of the last mile of the marathon, which they complete on the parade route Saturday.
Several businesses in the area have donated $6,000 to give to the schools. The school with the most students participating receives $2,500, Hawkins said. Money will also be awarded to the four runner-up schools with high participation.
"We hope they don't use it for pizza parties, since the goal is for kids to be healthy, but the schools can use the money as they wish," Hawkins said. "It can be used to supplement the school and PTO budgets to areas that need extra money."
He said he eventually wants to have enough businesses donate so each participating school can receive some type of award.
However, he wants the focus to always remain on staying healthy.
"We want the kids to develop good habits for the future," Hawkins said.
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