HARLINGEN — Addyson Collins stood next to her father, her face flushed, breathing heavily after finishing the 5K Peace Run.
“It was good,” said Addyson, 12, just before she was called to a stand where she received a medal for coming in second place for the “12 and under” category at McKelvey Park.
Her father, Michael Collins, was proud of his family, which included his wife Melody and son Nolan.
“I’m proud of them getting out early on a Saturday morning to go run,” he said.
Now an announcer called his name, and he went to receive his own second place medal.
About 40 people participated in the event. It was the first run held by Preserve Earth, a nonprofit organization created by Elyssa Ramirez about five months ago. She founded the organization to inform society about such issues as global warming and the random targeting of police officers.
“We have police right now that are being threatened,” she said. She has personal knowledge of this because her brother is a police officer.
Harlingen police appreciated all the messages being communicated through the run.
“I was surprised she called me to do this,” said Sgt. Alfredo Alvear, who planned to give a short speech.
“I really believe it’s a nice thing to do in support of police officers not only here but nation wide,” Alvear said. “It’s a good feeling that the community supports us and are behind us.”
Onlookers and fellow runners cheered as others ran toward the finish line, morning sunlight glistening on their perspiring skin. Loud hip-hop music charged into the air with such popular lyrics as “This is how we do it…”
The DJs also threw a few retro pieces such as “I will survive …” into the mix.
This is an especially arduous run because of all the hills.
“We wanted to do a run to offset all the turkey we ate,” said Maria Lozano, 48, of San Antonio. She’d come from San Antonio to spend Thanksgiving with her sister-in-law Rosie Munoz, of Raymondville.
“The first mile, for me, it was OK,” said Munoz, 42. The pain began in the second mile, and it increased in the third mile.
The race challenged Lozano more than she expected.
“I didn’t know Harlingen had so many hills,” she said.
Money raised through registration fees will be used to increase awareness about various issues facing society and the world.
