More than 1,500 runners and walkers of all ages took part in the Peace Arch Hospital and Community Health Foundation’s Great Pumpkin Run/Walk Sunday, raising thousands of dollars for the hospital’s new emergency department.
With a brand new route that started and ended at Bayview Park on White Rock’s waterfront, participants chose between a five or one-kilometre trek at the Oct. 18 event.
As of Monday morning, $90,000 had been raised for the $20-million ER project, with more donations still trickling in. This year’s race saw a bigger turnout than last year, with 300 more participants raising $10,000 more for the hospital.
Fastest runners in the five-km route were Rob Durrant and Catherine Giles, who finished in 19:50 and 22:46 respectively. The top youth finisher was Nathan Erkau, 12, while 10-year-old Kole Herrewig finished the one-km route first.
Top individual fundraisers were three-year-old Molly Dove (in the youth division) and Connor Oldham; top fundraising teams were White Rock Optometry ($10,213) and the Peace Arch Hospital Cardiac Rehab Team ($13,000).
Now in its ninth year, the run has raised close to $450,000 for equipment and upgrades for Peace Arch Hospital.