Take the Reins 5K returns June 9 to Veterans Park

Runners will have the chance to celebrate veterans and give back to The Red Barn this June.

At the fourth annual Take the Reins 5K, runners will take to the trails of Veterans Park for a 10K, 5K and 1-mile fun run in support of The Red Barn’s mission to provide equine-assisted activities to individuals of all abilities and circumstances. 

The Red Barn, located in Leeds, works with children and adults with physical, cognitive and emotional disabilities, as well as veterans and their families.

The Take the Reins run is a way to highlight those services, said program coordinator Grace Butler, and is held in memory of a veteran who died by suicide, Cpl. Anthony Clay Ward.

“[The Ward family] and their daughter started participating in the Barn as part of their healing,” Butler said.

Each year, about 100 people come to the race, and many of them are men who served with Ward, Butler said. They come together from all over the country.

“There is a kind of camaraderie that happens during the run. They run as a team, but we also let them speak and tell their story,” Butler said. “...I think that’s just true to who we are as far as our character as an agency. We want to offer all our families, even our families of children with special needs, a special place to celebrate the life that they have.” 

The cost is $35 for the 10K or 5K, as well as for a sleep-in option for people who would just like a T-shirt. The 1-mile fun run is $20.

By participating in the run, Butler said everyone is helping support veterans as well as The Red Barn’s programs as a whole. 

For more information or to register, go to theredbarn.org/take-the-reins-run.

Take the Reins 5K

WHEN: June 9, 8-11 a.m.

WHERE: Veterans Park

DETAILS: 10K, 5K and sleep-in option: $35; fun run: $20