In a galaxy not so far away, a local nonprofit organization brought together the community for a cause that blended fitness with a fundraising opportunity.
Saturday’s Inaugural May Day 5K run/walk organized by PATH (People for Active Transportation Hawaii) attracted 61 participants to the Queen’s Lei trail path along Ane Keohokalole Highway. It also happened to fall on May 4, so event organizer and PATH’s chief operating officer, Kelly Hudik, cleverly linked the event to having a Star Wars theme that coincided perfectly with the movie’s timeless mantra, “May the Force be with you.”
“It’s always fun to have themed events!” Hudik said. “And because it’s Star Wars Day, we are going to start the run with the Imperial March.”
Hudik, who is an avid runner and triathlete, is not new to organizing fun running events as many remember her successful six-year stint hosting the popular Senior Strut and Groundhog Gallop prior to the pandemic. Hudik added that the inspiration behind creating the fun 5K were twofold.
“One, was to start doing events again for PATH and to get our name out so people are aware of what we do,” she said. “The other part of it was, because this is part of the Queen’s Lei path which PATH advocated for when they created Ane K, it was just another opportunity to get people up here to using this path. So, it’s really about getting people out, using the path to get exercise, and having an easy, yet fun run/walk for people to do while getting information out to the public about what PATH does. It also serves as a fundraiser for us as well.”
PATH is a community-based, grassroots 501(c)(3) nonprofit public access advocacy organization serving Hawaii County. Their mission is to safely connect people and places on Hawaii Island with pathways and bikeways. PATH was founded in 1986 in response to a growing need for places to walk, bike and hike safely and legally in Hawaii County. Year-round the nonprofit raises funds to provide free bike education classes to keiki, assist in promoting safe walking and biking on Hawaii Island, and continue expansion of the HIBIKE bikeshare program. Saturday’s event was a fundraiser to continue providing free bike education classes to fourth-grade students across the island.
As the iconic Imperial March music, Darth Vader’s theme, echoed through the starting line, runners and walkers gathered under a red balloon arch for the 7 a.m. start ready to tackle the out-and-back paved Queen’s Lei path.
“One of our biggest missions in PATH is doing bike education classes for kids,” Hudik said. “We provide free bike education classes for fourth graders island-wide and it’s about teaching them how to ride safely. We also provide free bike helmets for all of the kids who participate in the program. The average cost for us to provide those classes is about $125 per child and all of our funding at PATH is by either grant or donation. Today’s fundraiser is going toward helping continue that mission.”
Hudik added that PATH recently returned to bringing their free bike education classes to several schools after a year’s pause. However, how many schools they are able to reach in the coming year will depend on funding.
“Depending on funding, we hope to do 20 schools during the school year,” Hudik said. “This past year we have 12 schools that are scheduled. Last year we had Kona Pacific Charter School, we did the Trek the Trails event at the West Hawaii Civic Center where we provided helmets and classes to about 75 kids, we will also hit the Summer Fun program down at the Kekuaokalani Gymnasium in June where we will have about 90 kids participating, and Kohala Elementary School next week.
“A huge mahalo to our event sponsors Big Island Running Company, Kiser Motorcycles, NextHome Paradise Realty and Island Hopper Taproom for helping us to make this fun 5K happen!”
At the end of the morning, the event wasn’t about breaking a sweat — it was being like the heroes of the Star Wars saga where people can be force of positive change in their own galaxy, like our Big Island community. Anyone interested in learning more about PATH, donating to PATH, or interested in volunteering for a bike education program, please visit their website at www.pathhawaii.org.