City of Weston and Title Sponsor Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital Presented the Event
The Rotary Club of Weston and City of Weston community came together to make a seemingly impossible charity event happen on Dec. 6: the Rotary Run for Tomorrow, including an in-person Health & Fitness Festival and in-person Get Fit Challenge. More than 1,600 adults and 700 children participated in the event, raising funds for those in need in Broward County and worldwide. The City of Weston and Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital (the event’s title sponsor) presented the event.
“The Rotary Run for Tomorrow was a wonderful way for so many parents and kids to finally be able to get out again for a fun event,” said Frank Dreier of the Rotary Club of Weston. “This event showcased that Weston is a great place to live, even during the most difficult times. It far exceeded our expectations. We are very thankful to the City of Weston commissioners, our generous sponsors, and hundreds of volunteers who made this event possible.”
The Get Fit Challenge and the Health & Fitness Festival, fun-filled health and wellness events open to the entire community, took place at multiple locations throughout the City of Weston due to the COVID-19 pandemic and to adhere to social distancing guidelines. A variety of fitness, wellness and health activities happened at every location. Participants also had the option to complete online tasks or enjoy a drive-around-town scavenger hunt. Participation in the Festival and Get Fit Challenge was free of charge.
All elementary schools in Weston were invited to participate in the Get Fit Challenge. The Sagemont Lower School won this year’s Commissioner Cup at the Get Fit Challenge. The top three schools who gained the most points in the competition The Sagemont Lower School, Imagine Charter School at Weston, and Indian Trace Elementary will receive a $1,000 cash prize. The remaining participating elementary schools in Weston will receive $500 thanks to the Rotary Club of Weston, Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital and the many event sponsors. All Get Fit Challenge participants received a free Festival T-shirt and giveaways, and could participate in multiple raffles and competitions at the Festival.
The in-person events served as an example that other organizations can safely host in-person events amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The Rotary Club of Weston incorporated fun games that allowed participants to stay inside their car while partaking in the activities. To allow for social distancing, the in-person events took place at multiple locations throughout the City of Weston to ensure that there were no large crowds. The Rotary Club of Weston is proud to have hosted a successful in-person fundraising event despite all the obstacles due to COVID-19 and believes that other organizations can adopt this format to host their own in-person events.
On Dec. 8, representatives from the Rotary Club of Weston met with City of Weston Mayor Margaret Brown and other city officials, elementary school principals, and title sponsor Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital at the City of Weston’s City Hall. There, they officially presented the prestigious Commissioner Cup Trophy to The Sagemont Lower School, gave cash and checks to participating school principals, and presented raffle prizes to the winners.
“We would like to extend our sincere gratitude to the City of Weston, Rotary Club of Weston and all of the sponsors such as the title sponsor Joe DiMaggio’s Children’s Hospital for making this event possible,” said Monica Vigna, Ed.S, principal of The Sagemont Lower School. “The Sagemont School truly values and enjoys participating in the annual Get Fit Challenge and Festival as it promotes health awareness and increases community involvement, partnership and participation.”
Rotary Run for Tomorrow also includes virtual run events (5K, 10K, half marathon, half marathon relay) from Dec. 5–13. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all runners participate at a location of their choice and complete their run any time from Dec. 5–13. Run results will be tracked by RaceJoy and automatically uploaded to a central data base. Artfully designed runner medals and hi-tech dri-fit shirts will be provided to all runners.
Key businesses in the Weston community that sponsored the event include DynaServ, Ultimate Kronos Group, Mohsin & Fauzia Jaffer Foundation, Freedland Harwin Valori, Omniangle Technologies, Radius Financial Group, AllClaims, Florida Blue, Acuderm, All Claims Solutions, Amerant Bank, Bank United, Castle Group, Centennial Bank, Civic Rush, Dan Stermer, Dynaserv, Gerry Horwitz, Great Waste and Recycling, Zombek Orthodontics, Debonair Mechanical, and Trinity Title & Escrow, LLC.
Over the past 20 years, the Rotary Run for Tomorrow for charity event has raised well over $1 million in proceeds for charities serving local needs, which include Harvest Drive, LifeNet4Families, Jubilee Center, Honor Flight South Florida, and HANDY, as well as humanitarian projects in other countries and worldwide polio eradication programs through the Rotary Foundation. For more information about the Rotary Run for Tomorrow, visit westonrotaryrun.com.
About Rotary Club of Weston
The Rotary Club of Weston has been a part of the landscape of the City of Weston since 1986, and today is recognized as one of the leading community service organizations in Southwest Broward County. It focuses its community service activities in the areas of Services to Youth (including education / scholarship / learning development) and Services to Families In Need. It addresses the needs of the Southwest Broward community through volunteerism, the application of member skills, organizational resources, and fundraising activities and events. For more information, visit www.westonrotary.com.
