The 8th annual Red Deer PCN Women's Fun Run is now open for registration for 2019, with the proceeds going to the important Mustard Seed School Lunch Program which is fairly new to Red Deer.

Event Coordinator for the Fun Run Val Jensen said that she knew right away this was their charity of choice because making sure kids have nutritious meals every day is not something that can be solved with one fundraiser.

“When I saw and met them two years ago, my heart just said, this is our charity. Feeding children 55,000 lunches is a big need and it’s not something you can do once, kids need to eat every day. So we need to stay on that train to help them every day.”

Jensen says they've opened up the run to more than just women because they want to promote not only helping with the newly formed school lunch program, they also aim to promote health and wellness for the entire community.

“It is the Red Deer PCN Women’s Fun Run, but now we’ve opened up an event for the families for the men. There are seven different events, from the 100M Diaper Dash, right up to a timed 10k. So it’s fun but it can be very competitive.”

Jensen says they were able to raise about $35,000 last year, but this year they are aiming for a more modest goal of $25,000, as charities are also feeling the hit of a less than stellar economy.

The official sponsor and media launch was held at the Mustard Seed in Red Deer on Thursday, January 31st.

The PCN Women's Fun Run is on May 11th, and registration is open now. For more information, you can check out womensfunrun.com.