Update:
ESTEVAN — Due to unforeseen circumstances the HoHoHoliday Run plans are going to change slightly, said event organizers Friday afternoon.
The date and time remains the same, however the route was adjusted.
Running Santas will meet on Saturday at 10 a.m. at the Church of God and pose for a picture before proceeding with their fun and festive run/walk. They will then go across the street to wave to the residents of the Estevan Regional Nursing Home.
From there they will go down Wellock Road up to Newcombe Drive, follow Newcomb to Nicholson Road. Then running and walking Santas will take Nicholson Road to Long-term Care unit at St. Joseph’s Hospital, do a loop through there and cheer the residents.
After that, they will come back out following Nicholson down to Creighton Lodge to wave to seniors at Creighton Lodge. Finally, Santas will take King Street and then go back to the Estevan Regional Nursing Home.
Original report:
The HoHoHoliday five-kilometre run is coming to Estevan for participants to enjoy a healthy and fun activity that should also cheer the onlookers.
Estevan runners joined the virtual HoHoHoliday run – the most festive fun run in Canada – as the event disruption states. This five-kilometre run/walk combines the magic of the holidays with community engagement and fitness. Local participants will be a part of a holiday movement and virtually join 10,000 Santas across Canada who are spreading cheer in their local communities, while also raising funds to support Make-A-Wish Canada.
Twenty-seven local Santas signed up to partake in this fun, non-timed run or walk, slated for Dec. 17, starting at 10 a.m. at the corner of Smith Street and Yardley Place.
The runners, dressed in Santa suits, will go by the Estevan Regional Nursing Home, long-term care at St. Joseph's Hospital and Creighton Lodge, and then return to Smith Street and Yardley Place.
Sheila McGillicky, who organized Estevan's HoHoHoliday run along with Tamara Stephany, said she got a notification about the virtual event and posted it on the Estevan Road Runners’ Facebook page to see if there was any interest to join.
"A couple of people were to do it, and then it just kind of exploded after that," McGillicky shared.
The course is a bit longer than five kilometres and will go west on Smith to 13th Ave and then north on 13th to Wellock Road. The runners will go through the parking lot of the Estevan Regional Nursing Home so that any residents in the dining room will see them.
Then, the participants will go west on Wellock Road to Irvine Crescent, where they will take the path to Royal Heights Park and over to Nicholson Road, which will take them to the hospital. At St. Joe's, running or walking Santas will go through the smaller parking lot by the long-term care (LTC) unit to give a wave to any residents that may be watching for them.
From there, they will come back down Nicholson to Creighton Lodge and give residents a wave on their way by. They will then follow Hillcrest Drive to King Street, take King Street back to 13th Avenue and then head back down Smith Street.
When they started planning for the route, one of the runners suggested they could spread some cheer to people in the nursing home. And McGillicky was able to come up with a route that also included LTC and Creighton Lodge. She noted that another local runner partook in this virtual event last year, and they also did a fun run in costumes on Halloween. So, this time their festive and healthy efforts went another step further.
The main goal of the HoHoHoliday Run is to spread some smiles and Christmas spirit. The event is meant to be fun and maybe brighten someone's day.
"We just plan to go out and spread a little bit of Christmas cheer, maybe put a smile on people's faces. Hopefully, it's a nice day out there and maybe we'll just make somebody's day a little bit better," McGillicky said. "Christmas might be tough on some people, especially some of the residents of the nursing home, the long-term care and Creighton Lodge. It might just give them an extra little smile."
While the registration for the event is done, McGillicky said the community is welcome to come wave to the Santas or join them for a walk or a run, spreading joy.
