Bradenton Area Riverwalk Regatta run over Green Bridge to benefit local youth

BRADENTON -- Organizers of the Feb. 6-7 Bradenton Area Riverwalk Regatta have placed another piece of the growing puzzle into place that begins to show the picture of that weekend's family oriented event.

Saint Stephen's Episcopal School, in Bradenton, is moving its annual Falcon 5K River Run fundraiser from Riverview Boulevard to downtown Bradenton Feb. 7. The Boys & Girls Club of Manatee and Sarasota counties also are partners with all three organizations benefitting from the proceeds of an event that is expected to draw more than 1,000 runners.

Participants can take part

in either the 5K race from downtown Bradenton across the Green Bridge into the city of Palmetto and back again, or participate in a 1-mile fun run.

Helping to organize the event is Fit2Run -- The Runner's Superstore, with a store in Palmetto. Marketing Events Manager Justin James said it was an honor to be involved in the event considering the beneficiaries.

"We were happy to share the date and improve the location of the Saint Stephen's Falcon 5K -- which we have been a sponsor of -- by bringing all three non-profits together to create one large Saturday-morning community running event in the heart of Manatee County," said James. "We see this new regional running event as an opportunity to raise funds for another group we care deeply about. Without groups like these, our youth would be more at-risk and have less of a positive impact on the healthy, active community we are trying to create."

The races will kick off at 8 a.m. and conclude around 11 a.m., at which time, multiple regatta events are scheduled to begin, which will last throughout the day. Details on how to register will soon be available on both the Boys & Girls Club and Saint Stephen's websites.

"With moving our annual (run) from Riverview Boulevard to the heart of Manatee County along the Green Bridge and surrounding downtown riverfront areas of both Bradenton and Palmetto, we are excited to take center stage to promote student athletics and healthy lifestyles of our area youth," said Jan Pullen, head of school for Saint Stephen's.

Bill Sadlo, CEO and president of the Boys & Girls Club of Sarasota County, said an opportunity to partner with the Boys & Girls Club of Manatee County always is an excellent opportunity to share a common message.

"Whenever possible, we love partnering with the Boys & Girls Club of Manatee County," said Sadlo. "Strengthening our community of youth and solving problems for the youth of our community is a shared goal and we do that through impactful programs, which we could not do without the support of the community and events like this one. Our three areas of vision include academic success and building good citizens and is why this event is so important to our third vision of trying to foster healthy lifestyles."

David Gustafson, Bradenton Downtown Development Authority executive director, said it's just another example of how Bradenton, Palmetto and local businesses are working together for the good of the community.

"And this demonstrates that public-private partnerships work and are the backbone of this great community," he said.

For a full schedule of regatta events, visit BradentonAreaRegatta.com.

Mark Young, Herald urban affairs reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7041 or follow him on Twitter @urbanmark2014.

This story was originally published November 22, 2014 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Bradenton Area Riverwalk Regatta run over Green Bridge to benefit local youth ."