1.2K join PIC Hafa Adai Color Run

Singaporean Ashwin Mohan Ram was among the 1,200 runners that joined last Saturday’s Hafa Adai 5K Color Run, which started and ended at the Pacific Islands Club in San Antonio.

Ram, who was on Saipan for business, said he decided to join the fundraising event on the invitation of PIC staff.

“The people at PIC recommended it. It was a really cool event and it’s for a good cause,” said Ram, a computer software engineer. “I love to come back here for a vacation with my wife, but I don’t know when. Maybe, if there’s not much work.”

Families, friends, employees from different business establishments, and students from various schools packed the northbound lane of Beach Road where they ran from PIC to Chalan Kanoa across the Triple J Wholesale store and back.

Volunteers throw colored powder to runners in last Saturday’s PIC Hafa Ada 5K Fun Run. (Jon Perez)

A 30-member personnel from the newly created Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services, wearing red shirts, also participated and livened up the 5K run with cadence calls.

Agape Christian School had the most number of elementary students with 18, while Hopwood Junior High School topped the junior and middle school division with 33. Some 110 students from Saipan Southern High School also took part in the fun run.

ACS and Hopwood received $300 each worth of sports equipment from PIC, while Saipan Southern $400 worth of sports equipment also from PIC.

The Salvation Army was the recipients of funds from last year’s event, which is patterned on the Hindu spring festival Holi were participants throw colored powder as part of the celebration.

Part of the proceeds of the fundraising running event will be donated to the Northern Marianas Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence, an organization helping victims to speak out against abuse.

Pacific Trading Co., Let’s Move Marianas, Triple J Motors, Marianas Visitors Authority, Delta Airlines, T Galleria, Five Star Wholesale Foods, Tobacco-Free CNMI, Division of Youth Services, Department of Community and Cultural Affairs, CNMI Diabetes Prevention and Control Program, Division of Public Health, Island Apparel, Sea Touch, Bridge Capital, The Shack, and SandCastle were the sponsors of the event.

Cash and other gift certificates were given away with the top prize a round-trip ticket to Japan courtesy of Delta.