Arizona
Related: About this forumHe's no Dem, but
Tempe Mayor Hugh Hallman is a pretty good guy and has done a LOT for his city.
For Immediate Release
1/5/2012
Kris Baxter-Ging
City of Tempe
Community Development Marketing Specialist
(480) 858-2059 kris_baxter@tempe.gov
Sweaty mayor to raise $1 million for Tempe charities
Its a very sweaty million dollars that Tempe Mayor Hugh Hallman has almost raised.
This is the fifth year of the Mayors Run for Wellness, part of the P.F. Changs Rock n Roll Marathon.
Hallman, who turns 50 just two days before this years race, is marking the anniversary of his birth by running his first marathon (hes already done more than a dozen half marathons) with 500 people who have raised money for Tempe charities. By race day, he will likely surpass the million dollar mark for Tempe non-profit organizations.
According to Dan Cruz at Competitor Group, the company that organizes the Rock n Roll Marathon nationally, Hallman is the single largest fundraiser the race has had by far. And that is saying a lot, considering the tens of thousands who run at the more than two dozen races around the world.
Hallman, hundreds of runners and corporate sponsors such as Blue Cross Blue Shield, Tempe Marketplace, American Outdoor and many others, have distributed about $800,000 to charities in the last four years. This year, 19 charities will benefit from the Mayors pounding on the pavement. You can see the list of sponsors and charities at http://www.mayorsrun.org/ You can also still sign up to run the marathon or half marathon, or, if youre feeling a little less ambitious, you can make a donation to the cause online.
Squeezing training runs in between his job at Tempe Preparatory Academy and council duties, Hallman plans to do something fairly outrageous this year: hes going to run the brand new half marathon route twice. The first time hell do the 13.1 mile course backwards, without water stations or marathon staff, starting at 5 a.m. Hell finish the half in about 2:15, just in time to start the half all over again this time running the course with everyone else in the right direction.
I wanted to challenge myself. I really didnt start running as an adult until we decided to have the Mayors Run, Hallman said. Ive seen people change their lives and their health for the better through training for this race, and weve helped a lot of organizations maintain and improve their services to the community. If I can do this, so can other people my age and older. Exercise is an extremely important component of healthy living, especially as we age.
While wanting to run the marathon, Hallman also wanted to run the new, beautiful half-marathon course, with both a start and finish in downtown Tempe. http://runrocknroll.competitor.com/arizona/event-details#course
The new course is gorgeous, Hallman said. What could be better than running from downtown Tempe into Scottsdale, through Phoenixs portion of Papago Park, over the Mill Avenue Bridge and into Sun Devil Stadium?
The last practice run for the Mayors Run team happens this Saturday at 8:30 a.m. at the Tempe Family YMCA, 7070 S. Rural Road. Anyone who wants to run with the team is welcome.