ORANGE COUNTY, N.Y.–The 19th Run 4 Downtown took place on Aug. 16. Participants ran four miles through the streets of Middletown on the beautiful summer day, with light clouds and mild temperatures making the event an amazing time for everyone.
The race was started by Something Sweet Dessert Café in 2006 as a way to give back to the community, raise money for downtown projects, and draw people back to the area. This would’ve been the 20th race, but one year was skipped during the COVID-19 pandemic.
David and Anna Madden have been the main organizers since the event’s creation. They now own the Piccolo Cucina e Vino, in the spot where the Something Sweet cafe was located.
“The purpose was to generate funds for special projects,“ Middletown Mayor Joseph DeStefano told The Epoch Times. ”Run 4 Downtown would contribute to improvements in the downtown. But the main interest is also to reintroduce people to this new downtown that we have. So it’s a promotional way of bringing people into our downtown and bringing the community together.”
Over the years, Run 4 Downtown has raised in excess of $150,000 for projects such as the clock in the Run 4 Downtown Park, the pavilion in Erie Way Park, and improvements to Thrall Park.
This year had more than 800 runners, and about 4,000 people joined the after-run celebration. North Street stayed closed for the Flavors Without Borders Taste of Downtown event. A new record of 20 downtown restaurants joined in, offering food samples with admission.
Volunteers for the event come from many Middletown organizations, including Touro University, the Middletown Lions Club, and groups from Middletown High School.
The race was split into three groups: walkers, female runners, and male runners. The first six contestants across the finish line received cash prizes. First place overall went to William Whelan, 26, of the Brooklyn borough of New York City, who finished the race in 21 minutes, 6 seconds. Travis Chewning-Kulick, 30, from Harriman, N.Y., took second place with 21 minutes, 48 seconds. Nicholas Doran, 17, of Monroe, N.Y., finished in third place with 23 minutes, 13 seconds.
Skylar Musa, 33, of Grahamsville, N.Y., took first overall in the women’s category with a time of 24 minutes, 53 seconds. It was her fourth year in a row winning the category. Musa coaches at the Tri-Valley school district and has helped train two All-American runners.
Musa said she hadn’t run any races since having a child just three months before the race. She told The Epoch Times that she was pleased with the event.
“It’s organized. It’s very family friendly. They have all these vendors afterwards. You can get free pizza. And it’s just cool. It’s almost like a mini fair after the race.”
The course is “really hard,” Musa said. “But it’s a really nice race. They do a great job.”
Orson Whitehouse, 17, of Greeley, Pennsylvania, joined the race with a friend. The high school track and field athlete finished in 25 minutes, 29 seconds, good for 17th place.
“It was brutal at the third mile,“ he said, ”because it was so hot and then it started going uphill. Other than that, I think it went pretty well.”
Running and planning the event is a year-round process, David Madden said. It went very smoothly this year, as organizers worked closely with the City of Middletown, he said, and he’s happy with the positive effect that the race has had on Downtown Middletown over its 20-year history.
“[My favorite thing is] when we are at the finish line, we’re watching everyone finish, we walk around the corner, and we see the crowds on North Street, and we see the community spirit,“ he said. ”That’s just awesome.”
