Task #41: Run a 5k - Whittingham Cancer Center Walk/Run (Kim)

41.  Run a 5k

My family has participated in Norwalk Hospital's Whittingham Cancer Center Walk/Run for years in honor of my Uncle Tex, who passed away from lung cancer when I was very young.

I usually am with the walkers who walk about a mile.  This year, I signed up as runner and ran a 5k at Calf Pasture Beach this morning.  To provide some back story, I am not a completely new runner.  I run Outdoor Track, which is only one season, each year.  I focus only on mid-distance events, specifically the half mile, so doing a 5k as a race and not a practice was new to me and slightly intimidating.

My brother Rob ended up winning the entire race for all age divisions, my mom won her age category, and I won the female 14-18 age group!

I actually really enjoyed the race (as much as you can enjoy running a 5k).  My entire family was there and had worked so hard to raise nearly $3,000 for this event.  So, despite the cold weather this morning, we all got up and ended up having a great time together.

Our team was called Tex's Rangers in honor of my uncle Timothy, nicknamed Tex.  It was made up of not only our family but many friends of the family who participated, came to support, and fundraised with us.

We love and miss you, Tex.

Task #31: Volunteer at the Bear Flop (Kim)

31.  Volunteer at the Bear Flop.

I completed this task last month at Norwalk High's annual Bear Flop fundraiser.  This fundraiser raises money for a specific type of cancer each year through the Bears' Beating Cancer Club.  This year, the focus was all childhood cancers.  I sold tickets for this event at lunch, placed flyers around the school, and convinced several teachers to participate in the event.  During the Bear Flop, I collected tickets at the door.  I ended up being in a great spot to film the bellyflops.  I had trouble uploading and editing the videos from this event right away because my computer has a storage problem, but I was recently able to figure out a way to do it.  This event is a fun and unique way to fundraise; students love to come watch because it is comedic and competitive.

Here are some of the best bellyflops of the contest: