Students at the University of Rhode Island got colorful this past sunday thanks to a Color Run hosted by the URI Engineers for a Sustainable World (ESW).
All students on campus along with members of the community were allowed to participate in the untimed 5K. This Color Run had a turnout of about 25 students who came to run the race. This is the second time the ESW club held a Color Run on campus.
“The first was in Spring 2016,”Mariah Stephens, sophomore, said.
There were no titles given for first, second or third place. The race is “just for fun,” according to club President Patrick McNally and other members like Emily Day.
As with every race, however, there is always someone who crosses the finish line first.
The first two students to complete the 5K were Andrew Gomes and Steven Luciere. Gomes said that running the race was “the best of both worlds.”
“I’m apart of ESW and I ran in high school,” Gomes said.
Other students also enjoyed coming out to run the race as a fun way to burn some calories.
“I thought it’d be a fun way to start trying to be in shape,” freshman Michael Rock said.
Rock’s friend and running partner Kelly Blake said she was the one to convince him to run the race, however. Their other friend, Jenna Tolin, said it was just a fun thing to do together.
All the racers appeared to have a fun time getting doused with color.
The money raised from the race is being used for a project that ESW is doing on campus.
“[It’s] called a vertical garden,” McNally said. “It’s on an A frame. It’s a hydroponic system. When we’re done with it we’re handing it off to a place off campus.”
The money raised from the event will also be put towards a national conference the club is anticipating attending, according to McNally. The URI Engineers for a Sustainable World hung up flyers around campus and advertised the event on social media.
Stephens was mainly in charge when it came to organizing The Color Run. Other members on the executive boards helped organize and contact people to partake in making the event happen.
“I facilitate all that and I coordinate the event through my school color run,” said Stephens.
This the the first fundraising event for the ESW club of the school but the club is planning on partaking the holiday extravaganza and has a sponsorship event at Flat Waves restaurant on Nov. 2 from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m..