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In This Issue
New Location/Route
Volunteer
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Benefitting Organizations
This year's Luminaria Run benefits two organizations close to the directors' hearts. 

Meribeth Reeves is managing director of Desert Foothills Theater and DFT Gecko Teatro Youth Theater. These organizations are near to her heart and has been where she has committed her time the past few years while others took on the race organization.  This year partial proceeds will benefit this great award-winning theater and its theater education programs.

Melana Elliot's daughter, Hayley is an actress in the youth theater, but she is also the beneficiary o the services provided at the bone marrow transplant clinic at Phoenix Children's Hospital.  They have formed Hayley's BMT Buddies to support other families in need of those services. 

DFT Logo
DFT Gecko Teatro
DFT Conservatory of Performing Arts

DFT is a program of the Foothills Community Foundation
The Luminaria Run is BACK!
Greetings!

First, I want to thank you so much for participating in the Luminaria Run in the past.  All past organizers appreciate your support! 

We realize the race has been in transition the past few years as it has searched for a good home.  This year I am excited to be back at the helm of the event after a few years off and I have a great new co-director, Melana Elliot.

Together we are working to rebuild the race to its former glory as one of the most unique and beautiful races in the area.  We have read reviews of the past few years and realize there is some work to do to become an area favorite race again.  I hope you will join us in achieving our goal.

Sincerely,
Meribeth Reeves
Melana Elliot
Co-Race Directors
New Location and Route
In looking at runner concerns, listening to safety officials' concerns and balancing resident concerns, we decided to give a new location a try.  Just on the outskirts of town, the Cave Creek Memorial Rodeo Grounds provide a large staging area and the start to a course that boasts little (if any) vehicular traffic, very few residences, night-time city light views and quiet desert roads with rolling hills (not quite as steep as the ones on Schoolhouse Road).

 

I realize many loved the Stagecoach Village Route and I did too. Unfortunately, some residents in the area were extremely negative about the event and put our volunteers in uncomfortable positions each year.  We decided to see if another location would suffice before we went down that road again.

 

The original route on Schoolhouse Road is still one of my favorites; however turning the race backward last year was clearly not a preference of the runners who were running into the lights from vehicular traffic instead of running with the traffic.  It was done to allow an earlier opening of Spur Cross Road for pageant traffic (which has increased tremendously the past few years).

 

The amount of traffic on that route, combined with the speed at which many travel is a concern in regard to runner safety.  Unfortunately that is such a main thoroughfare of the town a complete closure of the road is impossible.

 

I wanted you to know that the decision to transition to a new location was not made lightly. We tried to balance the concerns of all involved with or impacted by the event. 

 

I hope you will consider our event this year as part of your running calendar.  Your feedback after the run will be imperative to the future of the race.  If this location works as we expect it will, we will continue to make the event even better.  If it looks like we need to return to an earlier location to help the race grow, we will start to fight those battles immediately after this race is over.

 

You are the most important part of this event. It was created by a runner who thought running along a luminaria-lit route would be gorgeous. It was always intended to provide a unique experience for the participants.  You can help us return this event to its former glory.
 
Volunteer Opportunities
We have some of the best volunteers around--many who have been with us since the start 9 years ago!  Working on this race is a great way to earn community service hours and we happily sign any required forms for those who work with us.

This year we are happy to be using Sign-Up Genius to make it easy for volunteers to sign up for positions. It also allows you to see where there are gaps that need to be filled.  You can also swap positions with others or change positions on your own if your availability changes in an way.

We still need help in all the usual areas: race setup, course setup, course monitors, water stop, timing, race cleanup and of course the all-important Luminaria crews.