If you haven’t heard of the Run for the Ribbons 1 Mile Fun Run & 5K, you have been missing out!

We hold this annual event in collaboration with the FirstHealth Richmond Memorial Hospital Foundation each April and are thrilled to report another record-breaking year with over 700 registrations.

Every year, the morning of Run for the Ribbons is electric. It’s as if all the running around, feeling a hundred different fabrics for the race t-shirt, dropping off race packets and pricking my finger on those teeny tiny little safety pins never happened. You can feel the excitement in the air from the staff and runners as they start arriving. You can also hear it because we start the music pumping early!

This is our fourth official Run for the Ribbons and, at this point, the race day feels just like a reunion. One of the best parts about this event is seeing our repeat runners year after year and how much they’ve grown in height, running time and personality! We also have first time participants of all ages, whether they’re running the 1 Mile Fun Run, or their very first 5K. Watching families participating together and friends meeting up in the morning to run gives you a strong sense of community.

We host a school challenge with Richmond County Schools where the school with the largest percentage of participants wins a $500 cash prize. This competition, the support of the school district and our generous sponsors help pave the way for a large turnout.

The 5K course is challenging to say the least. It features a gigantic hill known as “Love Lane,” a beautiful trail along Hitchcock Creek and rolling hills to finish the last stretch of the 3.1 miles.

What some people might not know is that three months ago, I had my third child. The idea of even doing any sort of physical activity was incredibly daunting. Love Lane felt less like a hill and more like a mountain this year. But having Katie as my personal cheerleader and ALL of the students that I see participate year after year cheering me on is what kept me motivated to finish the race.

The overall 5k race winner, Nick Fuller, finished in just 22 minutes and 18 seconds. And if you haven’t seen the Munson Family in action, you are missing out. Liberty, Aurora and Justice took home 1st, 2nd and 3rd place in the Female 10 & Under age division and Maxwell took home 1st in the Male 10 & Under category. Dad (Jason) took home 2nd in his category and Mom (Talene) and Freedom, who’s just 3 years old, finished the 5k in 49 minutes!

But who I’m most proud of is Katie for winning 1st place in her age division! It wasn’t my best time in my running history, I finished 12th out of 37 in my age division, but it doesn’t matter. Being part of this race and this community feels exactly like winning.

We didn’t just #ConquerLove on race day, we felt love from all over Richmond County and we are so proud of what we have, and what we have yet to accomplish.