Sunday's Family Color Dash Set To Benefit Glenview School District 34

GLENVIEW, IL — Though registration has closed as the event has reached its maximum number of participants, if you're looking for a fun activity to check out and an organization to support, Sunday's first Gelfand Gallop is a nice option.

The Debra Gelfand Children's Foundation, a fundraising charitable organization dedicated to providing support to Glenview School District 34 families experiencing hardships, is holding its first-ever first family-friendly colored-powder run to benefit the Foundation’s charitable efforts. The race at Johns Park, 2101 Central Road, is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m.

The Gelfand Gallop is an untimed one- or two-mile event open to all ages to run or walk, where runners will get covered from head to toe with vibrant colored powder throughout the course, according to a news release. Participants aged 5 and under can run a 50-yard dash for free.

Community volunteers will be at five color stations throughout the course that will dust participants with different colors as they pass each station. The colored powder is made of food-grade cornstarch that is biodegradable and considered non-toxic, according to organizers.

“We are excited to bring the Glenview community together for this fun color dash with music and local sponsors, and by the time runners cross the finish line they will be covered in vibrant colors,” said Kristi Mariani, fundraising director for the Debra Gelfand Children's Foundation, in the news release.

All proceeds from the Gelfand Gallop benefit the Debra Gelfand Children's Foundation, which supports Glenview District 34 families that have fallen on hard times. The Foundation works with all eight schools in the district. School social workers work directly with the students and families as liaisons to the Foundation.

“The Debra Gelfand Children’s Foundation has long supported District 34 students and their families that are in need. The Foundation provided over $100,000 in aid last school year from utility and medical bill assistance to clothing and school supplies,” said Barbara Silver, president of the Debra Gelfand Children's Foundation.

“My mother strongly believed in the importance of supporting children in our community,” said Zach Gelfand, vice president of the Debra Gelfand Children's Foundation. “The Gelfand Gallop is a great opportunity for families to have fun together outdoors and support a great cause. We are thrilled with the overwhelming interest for the race, reaching our maximum runners for this year’s event, and look forward to expanding our fundraising efforts in the years to come.”

The race goes off at 9 a.m. in wave starts. All runners must be present by 8:45 a.m. The rain date is Sunday, Sept. 11.

Sponsors of the Gelfand Gallop include: Athletico, Arbor Terrace of Glenview, Blufish Sushi Bistro, Culver’s, Connie Dornan with @Properties, Glenview Car Wash, Free Wheelin’ Design, Johnny’s Kitchen & Tap, Kiwanis of Glenview-Northbrook, The Little Gym, The League of Very Ordinary Gentlemen softball league, Montoya Tree Service, Reactive Performance Enhancement Center, ServPro of Glenview, Del Vasey State Farm of Glenview, Steven R. Felton & Associates, P.C., Willow Lake Orthodontics, Wintrust Community Banks.

To learn more about the Debra Gelfand Children's Foundation, visit here.