Second year autism 5K raises money for first responders

Seattle, WA- The second year for Superheroes 5K for Heroes raises money to help educate first responders in the area.  Runners hit the Green Lake area of Seattle to help support an Autism of Society of Washington event on Saturday, July 18, 2015 at 9am.   The 2^nd annual Super Heroes for Autism 5K event was hosted by Road Runner Sports located at 7020 Woodlawn Avenue NE and offered 10% of their sales that day to go to the good cause along with the entry fees of the runners.  Peter Denton along with store manager Sophie Hayde both representing Road Runner Sports expressed that their employer likes to support local community organizations, especially ones that promote activities involving health and fitness.  Although his job entails him to help organize and set up these functions for the area he works in, Peter age 30 spoke of his personal connection this event through his particular fondness for a cousin who is autistic.  It is important to acknowledge the rising diagnoses each year touchs more and more people all of the time. 

The Superheroes for Heroes 5K wasn’t just about raising awareness, but helping to raise much needed funding for specialized training to first responders when dealing with people who are on the autism spectrum.  As the numbers continue to increase for autism diagnoses so do the number of missing person’s cases specifically entailing a ‘wanderer’ or ‘runner’ (terms used to denote the person’s tendency to wander away and become overwhelmed and then lost).  Stories seem dot social media and the news agencies about autistic individuals wandering away from their homes and extensive searches ensue to find them.  With this prevalence, our law enforcement, emergency care providers, and medical professionals are beginning to understand the necessity for specialized training to help them meet the needs of the people that they serve.  Teresa McCann, President of the Autism Society of Washington and professional Behavioral Analyst with over a decade working with children on the spectrum, expressed just how important it was for responders to understand the most common places to look when searching and what is most important to know when trying to communicate with individuals that may not be verbal.  On the list of things, bodies of water and places that children can crawl into to help them calm down from potential sensory anxiety to name a few.

Runners came in all shapes and sizes

At about 8:30am runners and event coordinators walked over to the field where the race would begin and the sidewalks were filled with brightly colored outfits and capes as its participants made their way just the few short blocks away to Green Lake.  From people who were there just for fun to a few serious runners the field of competitors was broad and came in all ages; some were personally connected to autism and some were just there for the fun theme and a good time doing something for the community.  The race started promptly at 9am and soon the trail around Green Lake was flocked with bright capes and costumes amidst the normal sunny Saturday fare of walkers, runners, and bike riders who frequent the beautiful and popular park.  The sun was high and although it was only 9am it was already really warm outside.  Amidst the various employees of Road Runner Sports were a slew of volunteers working together to make the day a successful one.

The Hersts:  Michael, Colleen, Sam (10), Jack (7), and Elliot (9mos)

This is the Herst family.  Young Jack, age 7 (and on the spectrum), was the first boy and 2nd place child runner to finish Saturday.  The family is a recent transplant from Texas and are devoted to raising autism awareness and social education with first responders.

Winner Tyler Towner rounding the corner on the last leg of the race

Maggie Anderson 1st woman to cross the finish line

It was a just little after eighteen minutes that Tyler Towner, 26 years old, ran his way across the finish line to win the race.   Just a short time later his twin brother Evan followed suit coming in second place.  Maggie Anderson was the first place woman, followed by Brittaney Towner who came in as the 2^nd place woman.  First place child and girl, Isabel Rapp-Kopp age 9 and Jack Herst age 7 was the first place boy.   All runners were back to the finish line at about 10:30am.  If it seems there are a number of names that seemed to be the same, there were as both first and seond place men were twin brothers and the second place woman is wife to Tyler.  Other matching names could be seen throughout as whole families came decked out in their capes and

First Place kids:  Isabel Rapp-Kopp (age 9) and Jack Herst (age 7)

Once everyone made it back to the finish line, it was time to make their journey back to Road Runner Sports to participate in the closing ceremonies and award prizes and talk about the race.  Overall, for just the second year this event did fairly well; most annual events usually do not show any consistent turnout for at least the first three as it is a learning process.  The superheroes theme and colorful fun costumes are sure to be a hit in the coming years as well as a great symbol for a cause that is worth the attention.

Tyler Towner, Megan Spivey, Brittaney Towner, and Evan Towner

Tyler Towner  found out about this event through his wife, Brittaney.  She works for an organization called:  Seattle Community Care.  It offers specialized services for people and children on the spectrum in schools and some privatized care specifically to help with issues that are treatable with proper intervention.  They came together in a group of four with both brothers (twins) taking first and second places.