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 Gingerbread Run 5K Participants Take Off as the Race Begins! |
KISSIMMEE, Fla. (November 10, 2011) – Love filled the air on Saturday morning at the annual Give Kids The World Gingerbread Run 5K presented by Nickelodeon Suites and Pool Parts Online. More than 600 people from the Central Florida community (and beyond) ran, walked, rolled and strolled to help provide magical memories for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families. Through corporate sponsorships and individual donations, almost $50,000 was raised for Give Kids The World Village (GKTW), a non-profit resort that provides cost-free vacations for children from around the world whose one wish is to visit the theme parks of Central Florida.
“The Gingerbread Run is fueled by love,” said GKTW President Pam Landwirth. “Participants are enveloped by the spirit of hope and joy that fills the Village and are able to see first-hand the difference they are making in the lives of our precious guests.”
The Fladhammer Family is one of those families. They have been to GKTW on three separate occasions for each of their children’s “wishes”. Charlie, 11, Kate, 9, and Tommy, 7, were all born with the same immune deficiency disease that inhibits their bodies’ ability to fight off germs. Dana Fladhammer, the children’s mother, said Give Kids The World has helped make her family’s difficult journey a bit easier.
“This is a journey that we did not plan for our children. There are days that are very hard and there are days that we pray for our children and that we wish their journey would be much easier than it is. But, there is one week that we don’t have to worry because someone else is doing the worrying for us. And that is the week that we come to Give Kids The World.”
The Fladhammer’s joined other wish families and Gingerbread Run participants on the 3.1 mile path through the 70-acre “storybook” resort. The unique race path led walkers and runners through a child’s wonderland, past an Ice Cream Palace and Gingerbread House Restaurant, through a “Fairy Tale” forest and even by the World’s Largest Candyland game where Queen Frostine and Princess Lolly doled out delicious sweet treats to the runners passing by.
The fun-filled family event also featured live music and character appearances by DreamWorks’ Gingy, Nickelodeon’s Dora The Explorer and SpongeBob SquarePants and Give Kids The World’s lovable mascots, 6-foot-tall bunny rabbits Mayor Clayton & Ms. Merry and Murphy, the Gingerbread Man. All participants received a Gingerbread Run T-shirt as well as a homemade gingerbread man cookie baked onsite at the Village’s Gingerbread House Restaurant.
Monetary and in-kind donations were made by more than 20 national and local corporations including presenting sponsors Nickelodeon Suites and Pool Parts Online, as well as Boston Market Corporation, Regions Bank, NurseOnCall, NuQuest and Shrimpossibles from Bubba Gump Shrimp Company. “Virtual runners” from around the world also showed their support of the organization by sponsoring a runner or making a donation online.
The annual event at Give Kids The World Village is home to the original Gingerbread Run, however, the organization is encouraging supporters across the United States and globally to host their own Gingerbread Run benefitting GKTW. For information on hosting or sponsoring a Gingerbread Run in your community, visit www.gingerbreadrun.org.
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About Give Kids The World
Give Kids The World Village (GKTW) is a 70-acre, non-profit resort in Central Florida that creates magical memories for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families. GKTW provides accommodations at its whimsical resort, donated attractions tickets, meals and more for a weeklong, cost-free fantasy vacation. With the help of many generous individuals, corporations and partnering wish-granting organizations, Give Kids The World has welcomed more than 115,000 families from all 50 states and over 70 countries.. For more information about GKTW and its mission, visit givekidstheworld.org.
Give Kids The World Media
Colette Krahenbuhl
colettek@gktw.org
(407) 396-1114 ext 4259
