BEVERLY — Kids these days. All they want to do is sit around and play video games — at least that's what everyone seems to think.
Not in Beverly.
For the past five weeks, more than 30 students from Cove Elementary School have been meeting after school once a week to run around in an eighth-of-a-mile oval. For each lap, they get a Popsicle stick. Once they collect eight sticks, they can trade them in for a cool foot charm that they hang from a necklace and wear proudly around school.
It's an incentive that's paying dividends. Yesterday at Cove, dozens of kids were jogging around with fistfuls of Popsicle sticks, tallying them as they went.
"They've all stuck with it; the numbers haven't dwindled at all like you'd expect," said Liz Hollesen, whose son Nate, 8, is a runner at the school.
All that work is leading up to a districtwide fundraiser this Sunday: the Fall Frolic 5K & Fun Run. It's the first time each of the city's five elementary schools have teamed up to raise money.
The 5K Frolic, which costs $25 per runner, starts Sunday at 9:30 a.m., beginning and ending at Lynch Park. Just before the 5K run, at 9 a.m., children in grades five and younger will be running in a half-mile fun run, also at Lynch Park. That race costs $2.
Already, 160 people have signed up for the 5K run, including at least 40 kids 14 or under, says Shari Hewson, the race director.
"For a first race, it's considered a success if you have 100 people signed up. This is just phenomenal," she said. If the weather holds up Sunday, she expects another 50 or so people to participate.
Because of an outpouring of sponsorship from local businesses, each entry fee is almost 100 percent profit. The race is expected to raise between $500 and $1,000 per school, Hewson said. And there's a huge silver lining: The kids are loving the running.
Ethan Elliot, 9, of Cove School had a bunch of foot charms displayed on his neck yesterday to show his bona fides. They were bouncing around as he ran 28 laps, or 31/2 miles.
His secret is "breathing in and breathing out really hard," he said yesterday, not even looking tired after his run. "I've known how to do it for a while. My mom and dad and me go hiking a lot."
The running "makes me feel free," said Nikki Garvey, 10, who joined the Cove running club so "I can be faster."
Parents, of course, are happy their kids are staying fit and having fun doing it.
Deborah Schnabel's son Finn Moran is planning on trying the 5K run Sunday.
"He's made the connection between running and staying fit," Schnabel said. "Up until now, all his exercise has come from play, but in a few years he's not going to want to run around and play 'Star Wars.'"
Kelly Anderson, a parent of two at Cove, is the organizer of the Cove's after-school running program.
Her husband runs the one at North Beverly Elementary. When she began the Cove program five weeks ago, she had no idea how much interest there would be.
"I was surprised, happily surprised" when 32 kids quickly signed up, she said. "I was scrambling to get helpers.
"It's nice to get the kids out in the fresh air and exercise. Most are not even aware that there's a fundraiser, it's not important to them. It's just a chance to get some exercise, enjoy friends and really have a good time."
It's been good for parents, too. Moms at Cove have started their own running club that meets once a week.
The run fundraising committee has been meeting since the spring and includes parents from all of the elementary schools. A couple of parents had the idea for the fundraiser after wondering why the schools have historically had individual money-raising events. Why not team up?
"It's been a great way for all of the parents to get to know each other, since we're all going to be working together at Briscoe (Middle School) eventually," Hewson said. "The school response has been really great. And I want people to know this is only the first annual. (The run) will get bigger and better every year."
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