St. Louis de Montfort Walk-a-Thon Raises Awareness, Funds

Supported by Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital, St. Louis de Montfort Catholic School (SLDM) hosted its annual Walk-a-Thon on October 1^st at the Fishers parish. The fundraising event was held to demonstrate and promote a healthy lifestyle among students, which should include wellness and prayer as central roles. It also raised $20,000 for Catholic education.

Students at the school who participated received pledges from family and friends and made their walk from the school, located at 11421 Hague Rd. in Fishers, south along Hague Rd., through nearby Timber Springs subdivision and then returned to the school after completion of the route. Pastor, Fr. Pat Click, offered a slightly more challenging option for 7^th and 8^th graders for the first time this year. The “Fr. Pat Challenge” included a 3 mile run from the school to the Richey Woods Nature Preserve during which 45 students ran the route alongside the pastor!

Approximately 550 students, parents and faculty members participated in the event. All student participants were issued “prayer bracelets” containing the name and age of a patient from Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital for whom they prayed and dedicated their individual walk or run.

Sparta Training personal trainer, Matt Newman, was on hand to “warm up” all the students prior to the event, and the Indiana State Police provided for the safe passage of students along the run/walk routes thanks to parishioners Aaron and Amy Gaul. “Frojo” the clown (aka associate pastor, Fr. John Kiefer) entertained the crowd with his antics to keep spirits up!

Assistant Principal, Gail Harpold, added “Our walk-a-thon is a favorite of the children for many reasons. It just made sense to incorporate our new focus on healthy lifestyles for this year with our fundraising efforts. It was very heartening to see the students excited to find the name of the patient their walk would be dedicated to as well. That created positive energy and an attitude of gratitude among all participants.”

Event organizers, Jennifer Jordan and Colleen Scheu, noted that past pledges from the event have funded library book purchases, musical instruments, computers, and teacher “wish list” items at all grade levels. SLDM Catholic School serves children from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. For more information about the school, please contact principal, Annette Jones, at 842-1125 or ajones@sldmfishers.org.

Article written by Shelly Thieme

St. Louis de Montfort Catholic School, in partnership with the community, offers an educational opportunity for children in which scripture, Catholic values, and moral responsibilities are the core of their spiritual, intellectual, physical and cultural learning experiences.