Starbucks 5K raises funds for charity

ALL finishers were celebrated at the end of the Starbucks 5K event on Saturday, but more importantly everyone competed for a cause as the funds raised from the event will go towards a number of charities.

The race started at the Starbucks, Ellerslie Plaza, Maraval branch. Participants ran around the Queen’s Park Savannah before returning to Starbucks for the completion of the race.

Proceeds will go towards community charities such as Hope Centre, Ferndean’s Place Children’s Home, Marian House, Jaya Lakshmi Children’s Home, Wesleyan Children’s Home and Rainbow Rescue.

After the race Shane Lue Choy of Starbucks marketing said, “Starbucks mission is to inspire and nurture the human spirit one person, one cup and one neighbourhood at a time. So therefore we have partnered with charity homes in the geographical area in which we operate...so all the monies that we raise from this goes directly to those charities.”

The 5K event was initially scheduled to take place on October 20, but due to nationwide flooding the race was postponed.

Starbucks also played their part in helping the flood victims.

Lue Choy said, “We concentrate on the homes, but when we had the race planned for two weeks ago I had planned for a lot of food to come to the (Maraval) store during the race. As I postponed the race I did not want that food to go to waste, so what we did we immediately dispatched teams to go to Kelly Village and the Piarco area and we distributed foods to those flood victims.”

Lue Choy was satisfied with the number of people who competed in the event, despite the two-week-long delay.

“I don’t have the official numbers, but I am glad for the turn out given the circumstances of a postponed race. We had 800 people signed up, in my estimation about half of those people came, but that is understandable with a postponement.”

According to one of the race organisers more than 500 people competed.

People who could not compete in the event on Saturday because of the postponement, can still get their participation medals if they run a 5K by the middle of November.

Lue Choy said, “I am also offering a virtual race, which means that people who did not come to the actual race (Saturday) has the option to run 5K in any area that they choose. It could be a backyard, it could be a savannah near your house or it could be a treadmill. Once you cover a distance of 5K between now and the 15th of November, call me and tell me you complete the race and I will get your medal to you.”

Lue Choy said it is based on an honour system and he hopes people will be honest if they have completed 5K. Lue Choy will drop the medal for the finishers at one of the Starbucks branches.