This article submitted by Ben’s Memorial Mile
Thank you to everyone who came out and supported Ben’s Memorial Mile on August 9! We had another successful event raising money for mental health in honor of Ben Silver. This was our second year having road races followed by a community and music festival at Fishel Park. The event began with a little kids’ 100-meter dash followed by one-mile races in the neighborhood. The winning male was Will Surratt (4:33), and the winning female was Olivia Duax (5:17). Ribbons were given to the top three males and females in each age group.
Our community festival was also a resounding success. Paisans Pizza donated the pizza. Additionally, Al’s Pizzeria, Dan Kuchta, and Kona Ice donated part of their food sales to our organization. We also had mental-health vendors: NAMI DuPage, Alder Grove Counseling, and Heather Lippe (Downers Grove’s social worker). We had fitness booths run by MAR Health & Performance, Perspire Sauna Studio, Chicago Area Runners Association, and True Balance Karate. A couple of art booths were present: Jon Belonio (Belonio Doodles) sold his art with a portion of the proceeds going to our cause, and Megan Lawrence of Studio B Art ran a booth for participants to design their own medals.
The kids also had a great time at our event: we rented an inflatable obstacle course and had over 1,000 runs in it! We also had a kids tent with facepainting and other fun activities.
Our raffle was a big hit! We had many items such as a Dyson Supersonic Hairdryer, Cubs and White Sox tickets, a Chicago Bears Tremaine Edmunds autographed football, Chicago Fire tickets, and Windy City Bulls tickets. Chicagoland businesses such as Revolution Brewing, Portillo’s, Lou Malnati’s, Top Golf, and many more also donated items.
Lastly, we want to thank Eleven26 Entertainment for coordinating the music. We had live performances from the Rod Stewart Experience, Emma the Dilemma, James Libera, Prairie Station, and Whiskey Creek! All of the bands donated their time to support our cause.
Ben’s Memorial Mile is an event for everybody. Even if you don’t like to run or walk, there is something for you at our event. It is a feel-good day where the community comes together to support our cause and honor Ben and all who have been impacted by mental illness. We look forward to another successful event next year. Please visit our website to learn more and donate.