Document text
1 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Herb Rothschild Jr.: A delicate project ... What do you make of the street people downtown? ... Ashland stalker gets time served and probation after guilty plea for sex abuse, assault ... Herb Rothschild Jr.: A delicate project ... What do you make of the street people downtown? ... Ashland stalker gets time served and probation after guilty plea for sex abuse, assault ... EDUCATION Show up for monsters, stay for the Dash Seventh-annual race benefits Ashland schools Comment By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings DailyTidings.com By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings Posted Oct. 23, 2015 at 3:30 PM By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings Posted Oct. 23, 2015 at 3:30 PM » Social News To Susan Bacon, Ashlanders should turn out in droves for the Monster Dash because every year it stands as one of the most festive, exciting events in town. But if that’s not a good enough reason to attend the Halloween weekend celebration, which has been stretched to two days this year, Bacon is also fine with folks coming simply to support local schools. A major fundraiser for the Ashland Schools Foundation, of which Bacon is the executive director, the seventh-annual Monster Dash Run for Education will be held Oct. 31 at Lithia Park while the Dash-affiliated costume contest will be held the previous night at the Historic Ashland Armory, 208 Oak St. Race-day registration begins near the start of the race by the Lithia Park band shell at 9 a.m. and the 1-mile fun run/walk starts at 10:30 a.m. The 5-kilometer run/walk and 10K run are set to begin at 11:15 a.m. All the races are chip-timed. On Oct. 30, the armory opens at 2 p.m. for packet pick-up, late registration and the silent auction. The Monster Ball Pasta Party begins at 5 p.m. and the costume contest is at 6:30 p.m. The party, which will include a DJ and a variety of pasta dishes provided by sponsor Northwest Pizza & Pasta Company, is scheduled to end at 9 p.m. Tickets for the party cost $6 for kids ages 3-13 and $10 for anyone 14 and over, and can be purchased at ashlandmonsterdash.com . The races cost $10 for kids age 18 and under. For those 19 and over, the 1-mile fun run/walk costs $15 up until last chance registration on Oct. 30, when it goes up to $29, and the 5K and 10K races cost $25 if registered between Oct. 13-29 and $30 after. Proceeds from the Monster Dash fund classroom-based impact grants in Ashland and a few other grants. Teachers looking to fund special projects can apply for grants ranging from $500 to $1,000 twice a year. The idea, Bacon said, is to allow teachers to pay for “hands on, innovative enrichment projects” for the classrooms that they otherwise would not be able to do. For example, she added, a couple years ago an Ashland Middle School class launched a weather balloon equipped with a GoPro camera, using the equipment to gather data. “It has to be projects that directly involve their students in some kind of hands-on education,” she said. “It’s not used for teacher professional development or anything like that. Not that that’s not valuable, but that’s not what this money is for.” The money raised from the two Monster Dash events covers the classroom-based impact grant as well as fund the Ashland High School tutoring center. Bacon said organizers are shooting for a $22,000 net profit and 1,000 runners or more this year, but since the run is an outdoor event poor weather can negatively impact participation. That happened last year, although the event was still profitable. “So much of it depends on the weather,” she said. “Last year was really a down year as far as registrations because the weather was terrible the week coming up to it. It was actually pretty nice the day of the race but by then I think a lot of people had already kind of made alternate plans. So our registrations were definitely down last year and yet we ended up making more money because we’ve been expanding our Friday night big Monster Ball pasta party, and so we had a bigger turnout for that and we had a silent auction. So we’re hoping this year our registrations will swing back up.” Bacon said those who show up always end up having a good time. “Every year I get there — by then of course I’m exhausted — and I think to myself, ‘Why do we do this?’ and then I get there and people are so happy,” she said. “It is I think about the happiest event I’ve ever been involved in. People are having such a good time at the race, and all the costumes. It’s just fun. Even when the weather’s not nice people are still having fun. So I would really encourage people out there in the community that if they haven’t ever done it that they should give it a try. They can just walk the 1-mile and know that the money that they’re giving is going to the schools.” Co-presenters of the event, along with Ashland Schools Foundation, are Ashland Kiwanis and Yogurt Hut, backed by dozens of event sponors. Go to www.ashlandmonsterdash.com for details, or call Bacon at 541-482-8197. Joe Zavala is a reporter for the Ashland Daily Tidings. Reach him at 541-821-0829 or [email protected]. By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings DailyTidings.com By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings Posted Oct. 23, 2015 at 3:30 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... Business Name address Location, ST | website.com Find Southern Oregon Attractions Bars Restaurants Beauty Salons Entertainment Doctors Medical Specialists Contractors Education Lawn Services Lawyers Shopping Travel Tanning Used Cars Wedding Services ▼ Add your business here + Events Calendar Connect with DailyTidings.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Alerts Email alerts RSS feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2015 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Local Media Group Publications Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted. DailyTidings.com | P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501