On April 19, the Hesquiaht Place of Learning running group ran in the annual 10 km Vancouver Sun Run road race. The students at the Hesquiaht Place of Learning in Hot Springs Cove, along with Betty Lucas, have been participating in a “Learn to run/walk 10 km” program led by Mariah Charleson since the beginning of the 2014-2015 school year.
The youngest participant in the running group was Wes Thomas (five years old) and the oldest participant was Betty Lucas (62 years old), truly showing that you can start running and being healthier at any age.
The kids put a lot of determination and hard work into their training since September and were able to showcase it on an international stage at the Sun Run. The students are also excited about the potential of finally beating the adults at the annual “adults vs. kids stealing sticks match” that takes place every year at the school picnic. There has been lots of trash talking coming from the kids as they wish to put an end to the adults’ winning streak. Good luck to the kids!
Coming from a small remote village on the west coast, the kids were in shock when they saw the amount of people and the size of crowd awaiting them as they began to enter the downtown core of Vancouver to get ready for the start of the race. There were over 41,000 people who took part in the 10 km road race, it was quite a sight to see as the crowd along the start line grew larger and larger as the start of the race got closer.
The fastest student finisher was Angelene Barney at only eight years old who completed the 10km race in just 1 hour, 6 minutes and 30 seconds, only nine minutes after Mariah Charleson who completed the race in 57 minutes and 20 seconds.
To show how outstanding a run Angelene had, her next classmate to cross the finish line was nearly 35 minutes behind her. What an extraordinary young athlete!
Another notable finish was the mother-son duo of Heather Charleson and Maliquan Campbell, showing that the whole family can take part in healthy living and running. Heather completed the run in just over 1 hour and 12 minutes and her nine year old son crossed the line around the 2 hour mark. Though Wes Thomas was the youngest participant in the “Learn to run/walk 10km” training, he was unfortunately unable to attend the Sun Run due to illness, but his two sisters, Shaqai and Rakaylyn, were both able to attend and finish the 10km race. Congratulations ladies.
The youngest to complete the race from the group was seven year old Marilyn Aguilar-Charleson and the oldest race finisher was Betty Lucas. What an achievement for both finishers!
There were musical bands as well as supporters along the entire race course, as well as a wrap-up party in BC Place Stadium post Sun Run, where the runners listened to live music as well as had some post race snacks and drinks.
As the runners crossed the finish line they were cheered on by Jessie Thomas and Preston Campbell as well as each runner who finished. The excitement and pride on the kids’ faces when they completed the run was great to see.
Everyone who participated in the run completed! Congratulations to the following runners who represented the Hesquiaht Place of Learning at the 2015 Sun Run: Shaqai Thomas, Rakaylyn Thomas, Marleta Aguilar-Charleson, Olvin Aguilar-Charleson, Marilyn Aguilar-Charleson, Malizha Charleson, Angelene Barney, Maliquan Campbell, Heather Charleson, Betty Lucas, and Mariah Charleson.
An acknowledgment to Jason ( Bundy) Sabbas Jr. and Thomas Sam Jr. who were both participants in the “Learn to run/walk 10km” program at the Hesquiaht Place of learning through a large portion of the year but both had transferred schools prior to the Sun Run.
The Hesquiaht Place of Learning looks forward to participating in the Sun Run in 2016.Congratulation to everyone who completed the 10km race, as well as those who participated in the training throughout the year. A big thank you to Heather Charleson, Jessie Thomas, Preston Campbell, and Betty Lucas for helping out as chaperones for the event. Another thank you to Lory Campbell for driving the group to and from the ferry.
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Submitted by Mariah Charleson
