August

Running strong to end childhood hunger

Roadrunners run up $2,500 in winnings from Colfax Marathon to combat food insecurity in Denver.

By Cory Phare

August 14, 2017

Every May, more than 19,000 participants line up for the starting gun of the Colfax Marathon, one of the region’s premier running events. And while attention is often focused on the elite marathoners competing to break world records, other participants have the ability to make even bigger strides in their community.

That’s what happened with the Roadrunners Red team, who took first place in the co-ed Government Cup relay. Competing with hundreds of other groups, the MSU Denver squad of Kristin Barnett, Erik Boss, Daniel Hangstefer, Drew Markhardt and Abby Rolph raised $2,500 for hunger-elimination organization Food for Thought.

One of two MSU Denver groups taking part, the team finished with a time of 3 hours, 3 minutes and 29 seconds – more than nine minutes faster than the second-place runners.

“Food for Thought and MSU Denver have a great history together,” said John Kietzmann, associate director of athletics for marketing. “Student-athletes from Roadrunners Athletics have worked with Food for Thought to help pack lunches for a number of years.”

Volunteers with Food for Thought, which was founded in 2012, meet regularly on the MSU Denver campus during the academic year to pack supplemental meals for families in need. In the past five years, they’ve distributed more than 250 tons of food to Denver-area schools.

And thanks to the contributions of a few fast feathered friends, Food for Thought will be running strong even longer.

“Contributing to our greater community is a core value of MSU Denver,” Kietzmann said. “This just furthers our commitment to the community that we serve.”

For events and to get involved, check out the Food for Thought website.