Backdropped by the brilliant blue water and equally exceptional azure sky over the Georgia Strait, there were the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles longboarding along the Campbell River Seawalk.
Wonder Woman and Batgirl could also be seen sparring with one another on some driftwood.
And it was all for the kids.
Organized by REALTORS® from RE/MAX Check Realty, the first annual Super Hero Run for Children’s Miracle Network (CMN) had a goal of raising $10,000 for the BC Children’s Hospital Foundation and also managed to recruit 150 superheroes in training.
“All the children got capes and masks and were able to get their face painted or get stick-on tattoos preparing them for a day as a superhero,” said one of the event’s organizers, Erica Haley, a REALTOR® with RE/MAX Check Realty.
She said REALTORS® in the office continually support the CMN throughout the year, but wanted to do something special for a fundraising event.
“Unfortunately, every kid in every classroom knows a kid that’s sick,” Haley said. “In Campbell River we have this amazing walkway along the water so we decided to do something fun using that five kilometre stretch of trail.”
Parents paid a registration fee to be donated to the hospital foundation. There were game stations set up all along the path for each child to take part in and, in the end, organizers re-created a “carnival-type” event by donating bouncey castles for kids to jump in. Each child also got to go home with a prize.
The June 3 event was such a success, Haley said she can’t wait to make next year’s even bigger.
“Except maybe we’ll make the route a little bit shorter,” she said, adding, “5K is a long way when you’re not-so-small, never mind when you are!”
