Vibha Walk Paves the Path for Children’s Future
The 5th annual Vibha 5k walk and run was organized amidst a lot of enthusiasm and fervor at the Georgia Tech campus on Sept 27, 2003. This eagerly anticipated event every year attracts seasoned running enthusiasts, walkers and scores of Vibha patrons who come out and show their support for Vibha causes ? empowering underprivileged and deprived children in India with basic education, health and nutrition. The proceeds from this event also benefited the Atlanta Day Shelter for Women and Children. This year's event saw participation in excess of 300 people.
Race participants started arriving at the start line as early as 7:30 am. A very colorful ambience and feisty music greeted the participants. Margaret McManus, a fitness trainer from Crunch Fitness, led an aerobics session just before the race. The runners and walkers made use of this session to warm up for the race.
Trophies were awarded for the overall top two male and female finishers and the top two finishers in all the different age groups. Trophies were awarded for the top male and female finisher in the 1K race as well. The chief guest for the awards ceremony was Mr. David Casas, Georgia's General Assembly representative for the 68th District in the House of Representatives. He currently serves on the Economic Development and Tourism Committee, Education Committee, and the Arts and Humanities Committee. He was introduced by Mr. Narendra Reddy, a long time supporter of Vibha, and a community leader who has been involved for the past 12 years with mainstream politics. Ruth Schnatmeier, Executive Director of the Atlanta Day Shelter for Women and Children (ADSWC), also attended the awards ceremony. She has been the driving force behind ADSWC for the last 19 years, ever since its inception. At the event, she spoke about the history of ADSWC's association with Vibha and also expressed her greatest admiration for partnering with Vibha. The ceremony concluded with the honoring of Ms. Sumati Mahajan, a passionate long time volunteer for Vibha.
As part of the post race carnival and entertainment, Rachelle Willoughby and Moe Loughran put up a very engaging performance. Rachelle's musical roots stem from a wide variety of genres, including Blues, Jazz, Rock, Folk and Country. Moe Loughran, described as a younger and sultrier Sheryl Crow by the Country Music Journal, followed with her act. A nationally recognized and award-winning artist, she is the winner of the American Music Awards New Music Award for 2003. To learn more about Vibha, please visit http://atlanta.vibha.org.
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