On Saturday, August 5th, the Chillicothe St. Jude Runs team took to the road for the 19th time ending yet another very successful year of raising money for the children and families of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Since their inception in 2005, the Run and the Brad Wallin Memorial Tournament have worked side by side to raise over $5,000,000! The runners added $265,000 to their historic fundraising putting them at nearly $3,500,000 while the BWMT came in with $205,000 this year raising their cumulative total to over $1,600,000. We were proud to present a check for $465,000 on behalf of our little community.

This year, the run team totaled 70 fundraisers and drivers. The runners work from January until  Run Day raising money. Since we started, hundreds have run, tens of thousands have donated, and millions have been raised. The Chillicothe Run effort is known for its longstanding level of excellence for this cause. We are motivated by an unfortunately large number of St. Jude kids in our community. While we run in memory of a special few, we mostly run in honor of the many who have successfully beaten cancer.

A huge thank you to the folks of Chillicothe for supporting our effort every year and putting up with the noise and commotion we intentionally bring. A great big thank you to Jan Blank and her can-shaking crew who, like the runners, braved the five or so inches of rain and brought in over $7,000. Thank you to Sgt. Purcell and the Chillicothe PD for watching over us from start to finish. Thank you to IVC for giving us a place to launch and loaning vehicles to move runners. Thank you to Greg Kircher of GST Productions for keeping the “original best chase van” rocking! We appreciate the Chillicothe Fire Department for giving us a staging point for our parade through town and for making a St. Jude kid feel extra special. Dr. Denise Amundson, Troy Ginger & Frito Lay, Melissa at Beck’s, Susan Lawson, and The Ice Cream Shack all had a hand in keeping our runners fed and hydrated throughout the day. We also appreciate Dahla Conklin for organizing the food and fluids and for David Dutton for hauling it all day while directing the caravan of support vehicles. A huge thank you to Hannah Dutton, co-coordinator of the Chillicothe team. She works really hard year round, but makes it look easy. 

At our final group meeting before the run, we recognized our biggest raisers, highlighted by Chelsea and Jamie Duke topping $25,000 once again. Also in the top category are Jalynn and Nate Rohlf, Cari, Madi and Hannah Horack, Levi Holloway, Lisa and David Motter, and Dahla Conklin.

This year, we welcomed Chillicothe’s newest St. Jude family to our team this year, Chase and Melissa Farmer and their daughter, Eliza. Team Chillicothe welcomed this family with open arms as they endure something no little girl or parents should ever have to. They join other Chillicothe St. Jude families that run/raise—St. Jude kid/now healthy adult, Rachel Mattson, and her dad, George, and another St. Jude dad, Levi Holloway, running for his son, Kacer.

Even though we just unlaced our sopping-wet running shoes, plans are being made for the 2024 Run. Next year’s Run will mark the 20th time we’ve hit the streets as Team Chillicothe. If you are interested in joining us, find us on Facebook or email [email protected]. You won’t regret stepping up to serve these kids and their families. Being a member of Team Chillicothe is a challenge that reaps many rewards.