Tuesday, May 13, 2014
Voices of Disabilities: Miles for Smiles a Sunny Success
Voices of Disabilities: Miles for Smiles a Sunny Success: On one of the nicest days so far this spring, more than 200 people, many of them Macomb-Oakland Regional Center staff members and their ...
Miles for Smiles a Sunny Success
On one of
the nicest days so far this spring, more than 200 people, many of them
Macomb-Oakland Regional Center staff members and their families, walked or ran
in a 5K race to raise money for dental care for people with disabilities.
The event
was held at the 1,276-acre Independence Oaks County Park in Oakland County near
Clarkston on Saturday, May 10.
The 5K or
3.1-mile trek began at 10 a.m. Kody Coulter of Lapeer finished first in the 5k
run in 18:07 minutes; Matt Springer was second and Joe Lasceski was third.
The top
finisher in the women’s group was Eva Chmielewski, 15, of Columbiaville in a
time of 22:10 minutes. Sommer Schons was second and Morgan Turk, both of Lapeer,
was third.
It was the
third annual MORC Miles for Smiles race. Last year, some $1,200 was raised in
raffle ticket sales alone and $6,500 was donated for dental care.
Preliminary
figures show some $8,100 was raised to help defray the costs of dental care to
those whom MORC serves, said Jennifer Lasceski, a Human Resources Generalist.
Final totals were not immediately available.
“To all the runners, walkers,
volunteers, consumers and staff -- we can’t thank you enough!” Kerri
Pfaffenberger wrote on MORC’s Facebook page. “Today was wonderful. Everything
went smooth and the weather was great.”
The raffle baskets were a huge
success again, raising about $2,000 in ticket sales alone. Raffle items
included gift certificates for chiropractic services, concert tickets, a wine
basket and gift certificates for area restaurants.
“It was so
heart-warming to see so many join us to help provide brighter smiles for those
served by MORC,” said Futures Foundation Executive Director Teri Donaldson, who
participated in the race and was a member of the race committee.
Other
committee members included Lasceski, Pfaffenberger, Bonnie Mazzei, Alicia
Bianchette, and Megan Behnke.
“I thought
it was an awesome event and it was a great turnout for a great cause,” said
Bianchette, a supports coordinator at Clinton Township.
“It was
enjoyable to be walking my dogs, Mo and Joe, in the company of co-workers on a
gorgeous day in a beautiful park,” said Jane Guy, who works in the Health
Information Management Department.
Staff
members who sold tickets at the Auburn Hills Office included clerks Jane Corbin
and Carol Rowland, receptionist Joyce Gracey, support coordinator Bonnie
Mazzei, and Pfaffenberger of Speech Therapy Services.
Sellers of
the $30 tickets at the Clinton Township office were Human Resources Generalist
Jennifer Lasceski and Donaldson.
Kristina
Jankowsky of the Waiver Program, Kevin Cox and Vlad Cara of the Maintenance
Department were among the volunteers who were stationed along the route to help
guide the walkers/runners to the finish line.
Jerry Wolffe is the writer-in-residence/advocate-at-large at the Macomb-Oakland Regional Center. He can be reached at 586-263-8950.
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