Runners take off at the start line during the Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
730 register for holiday fun run
CRANBERRY TWP — Although it was cold and rainy Thanksgiving morning, Seneca Valley Senior High School student Sophia Aprile got up early to run in the annual Turkey Chase 5K, because family and friends were all together and weren’t doing much else.
Sophia and her family were just a few of the people lining the streets of Graham Park, which became crowded with runners and spectators as early as 7 a.m. Thursday.
“We’ve been doing this a long time; I’ve been doing cross-country since seventh grade, so it’s a tradition with my family,” said Sophia, a junior. “It has become normal. There’s nothing else we’re doing.”
Turkey Chase organizers claim the annual 5K gets the largest attendance out of any 5K race in Butler County, with 730 people signing up for this year’s event. Now in its 13th year, the Chase has become a tradition for many families in the school district, as well as from areas beyond the district, because of the opportunity for family fun it provides.
“It’s a great tradition,” said Jim Heltzell, president of the school district’s cross-country boosters and director of the Turkey Chase. “We’re amazed this many people come out on a holiday like this. We’ve got one person from Sweden, one from Colorado, Florida, all over the place.”
Like many other Thanksgiving fun runs, Seneca Valley’s holiday run raises money for a cause — in this case the cross-country boosters. Additionally, 10% of proceeds went to Armstrong’s Breaking Bread, an initiative that help fight food insecurity. According to Heltzell, the money is used to help pay for anything the school doesn’t cover related to cross-country and track teams at the high and middle schools.
Heltzell added that the boosters always are trying to get more students to sign up for track or cross-country.
“So it’s a lot of the peripheral things — making things easier and better for the kids, helping attract younger kids to come up,” Heltzell said of the boosters fundraising.
Many members of Seneca Valley’s running teams participated in the race — several of them placing well on the course, even though it has been more than a month since the end of the sport’s season.
Some former members of the team also did well, with Heltzell saying many graduates of the school and the cross-country program have remained supportive of the team since their graduations.
“This is off-season, the season ended at the end of October for most of the kids,” Heltzell said. “This is just nice timing to get out with their own family. Seneca Valley alumni from cross-country come back, I saw a lot of them today running again, supporting the old team, so that’s great to see too.”
Runners navigate the course during Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
N. Beck crosses the finish line during Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Heidi Webb runs in Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Connor Gibson runs in Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Runners navigate the course during Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Runners take off at the start line during Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Bruce Bailey runs in Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Frances Sparks runs in Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Sydney Heltzell, dressed in a turkey costume, holds the American Flag during the playing of the national anthem before she leads runners out during Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Caci Harvey and Caleb Cortese cross the finish line during Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Niel Skinner runs in Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Emma MacDonald, left, and Madeline Gagnon run in Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Cameron Cramer runs in Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
A couple holds hands as they reach the finish line during Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
T. Reese, 9, and Terry Reese cross the finish line during Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Jacob Hanselman runs in Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Dylan McBride is the first runner to cross the finish line during Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Cindy Waltemire runs in Seneca Valley Cross Country Boosters Club's annual Turkey Chase 5K at Graham Park in Cranberry Township on Thursday. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
