Put a Little Strut in Your 5K Stride

On Oct. 8, the Edmonds Civic Track and Field will be awash with kids, adults and even a few four-legged friends as members of the community gather for the Bill Hamilton Memorial Street Strut, a yearly fundraiser for the Edmonds Public Schools Foundation. According to the event’s title, this is the third annual Street Strut, yet the first one was held 25 years ago in 1986.

“The foundation’s first fundraiser was a Street Strut,” explained Debbie Bodal, president of the EPSF. “Bill Hamilton was a teacher in the Edmonds School District for more than 30 years, and he was known for his involvement in many innovative district programs including outdoor school, rocketry and running clubs.”

Bodal served on the board from 1993 through 1999, including six years with Hamilton. She took a break to get three of her children through Edmonds Woodway High School while still remaining actively involved in the school district. In 2006, she was asked to rejoin the board. When members kicked around ideas to raise more money for the foundation, Bodal remembered that Hamilton, who sadly passed away in 2005, had always wanted to bring back the Street Strut.

“Since it was Bill's dream to have the Street Strut, I thought it would be appropriate to have a 5K,” Bodal said. “I wanted to bring it back in his honor and to have his wife, Jeri, be a part of it. The rest is history.”

Sometimes history deals an ironic hand.

In 2008, the EPSF board decided to bring back the Street Strut. A fellow board member, Patrice Kettner, suggested that Bodal contact Frank Yamamoto, owner of Edmonds's Running In Motion, to get tips about hosting the event.

“When meeting with Fran,k he mentioned that a PE teacher in the Edmonds School District was interested in having an Edmonds 5K to get kids moving and that I should talk with her,” Bodal said. The teacher's name was Jenni McCloughan. "Come to find out, Jenni was Bill's niece! Amazing coincidence, so we connected right away”

The first annual Street Strut was held in 2009 and set the ball rolling. Now, the event is gaining momentum and the foundation has set a goal of having 1,000 runners participate this year.

The 5K will be honoring , a beloved PE teacher at Madrona School who was tragically killed in a car crash in January.

There will be two runs: the usual 5K, and a new 1K for children 8 and under. There will be a male and female overall winner, as well as prizes for the schools with the most participants. The winning school gets $500 for its associated student body (ASB), and the golden traveling shoe trophy (designed by Patrice Kettner and constructed by John Bush) to display in school. Last year’s winner was Maplewood K-8, with 128 participants.

And if that isn’t reason enough to lace up your trainers, the Street Strut will serve as the official kick-off event for the newly funded MOVE 60 program, which encourages kids to get up, get out and get 60 minutes of exercise every day.

What better way to get that started than a community 5K?

“Students love to see their teachers on the track walking with them,” Bodal said. “This is one of the few times during the year that staff members can participate in a group event where they can all be together in a casual, fun setting. Even the superintendent, Nick Brossoit, has walked every year with his dog”

To register for the Street Strut ($30 for adults before Oct. 3, which includes a T-shirt) visit the Edmonds Public Schools Foundation website.