One year after the River Road Run appeared to be on its last legs, a new committee has stepped forward and taken the reigns.
The four-person River Road Run Committee consists of parents whose children attend Holy Name of Mary and, come October, Little Falls Public. Proceeds from this year’s run on Sunday, Sept. 19 will go towards both schools’ fundraising projects for new playgrounds.  
Committee co-chairs are Jill Taylor, who helped revive the run last year after it looked like the event would have to be cancelled due to a lack of organizers, and Mary Jane Littlejohn, a friend of Taylor’s who  wanted to see the run not only continued, but develop into something the whole community can get behind.
“Every child and every family in St. Marys know someone who attends either the public or Catholic schools, so (the run)  is going to benefit everyone,” says Littlejohn, who notes participants have the option of donating all or part of their money to a specific school, if they wish. All other funds will be split evenly.
The fundraising committee for Little Falls has been hard at work over the past year raising money for several accessibility projects in and around the new building, including a new accessible playground. As of mid-August, the group, was just $35,000 away from reaching its goal of $300,000.
 The playground at Holy Name, meanwhile, has been deemed unsafe and will be torn down in the coming weeks.
“Right now the kids don’t have any playground equipment,” notes Littlejohn.
She says the school is considering several playground designs and have yet to determine how much money will need to be raised, but that they would like to have something installed as soon as possible. As more money comes in, they’ll add to what’s already there, she says.
“As soon as we get enough to purchase certain areas or structures, we’re going to be putting them up.”
Organizers have kept the route for this year’s run the same as in years past. The  3 km family walk/run starts at the Lind Sportsplex and heads west, with the  Westover Inn as the half-way mark.
The 14 km run, which Littlejohn says intimidated some casual participants, has been replaced this year by a 10 km run. Its route continues 3.5 km past the Westover before turning around.
“I know that a lot of committed runners love the 14 km race, but there’s so many people who I’ve talked with who are just working their way past 5 km,” says Littlejohn, as to why the committee opted for the shorter distance.
In hopes of increasing support and attracting new participants, the committee also recently launched a website, www.riverroadrun.ca, and created a logo.
“It’s (about) getting people to know about the run ... and making it a little more official,” says Taylor, of the new initiatives.
“We’re hoping the run evolves.”
Pledge forms are available at several downtown businesses, including Dunny’s Source for Sports. They are also available on the new website, where participants can also register for the run.  
The River Road Run was started in 1991, and has been run consecutively since 1996. It was started as a fundraiser for St. Marys Memorial Hospital.
Littlejohn says the committee hopes to this year will mark the start of a  new direction for the run, one that will see it continue to support the schools or other projects in the community.
“It’s a great way to fundraise, but also to promote healthy living and doing activities with the whole family,” she adds. “You don’t necessarily have to run the whole time. It’s more to set a goal and try to achieve it, and if feels good when you’re done.”