Annual Plainfield Run For Veterans Will Return May 2021

PLAINFIELD, IL — The annual run that honors veterans may have been converted into a virtual event this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, but organizers have already planned for the event next year. During its Sept. 21 meeting, the Plainfield Village Board voted unanimously to approve the 10th Annual Run For The Brave 5K for 2021 and associated road closures.

Coordinated by Operation Welcome You Home, the race is a fundraiser for military veterans who have sustained substantial injuries while serving the country. Funds are used to provide support, necessities and mobility assistance for these veterans.

The run intends to start on the property of Plainfield North High School on May 29 at 7:30 a.m., travel north on 248th Ave. to Millennium Parkway. Participants will then turn east on Millennium to Champion Drive, then enter the bike path near Glenbrook Circle.

Participants will stay on the bike path and travel south and east until Heritage Meadows Drive. Taking Heritage Meadows, runners will turn west on 119th Street, then south on 248th Ave. and return to the finish line at the school.

The awards program and vendor displays will all occur on Plainfield North High School property. The event has received an Amplification Permit and Open Air Meeting Permit to accompany the board's approval of the road closures.

In 2016, Operation Welcome You Home moved their annual 5K from Settler’s Park and Wallin Woods Subdivision due to the village’s construction project in the park. They were able to secure the use of Plainfield North High School and used the same basic route as the Fast Cat 5K.

According to the organizers, the selected route is one that they are familiar with and can estimate the duration of road closures and manpower needs — roughly 2 hours' closure and approximately 20 personnel (Police, PEMA and CSO’s). The coordinators have agreed to circulate a letter explaining their event and the proposed road closures to all residents on the affected streets.

The COVID-19 restrictions may still be in place, necessitating the event be cancelled or modified. Manpower costs to the village for the Run For The Brave 5K, including Police, PEMA and Public Works totaled $2,104 for 2019. Operation Welcome You Home made a $1,250 deposit.

The organizers also requested permission to place signs up around town beginning April 1 to advertise the run. The event usually attracts 500-1,000 participants to the village each year.

For more news and information like this, subscribe to the Plainfield Patch for free. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app; download the free Patch Android app here. Don't forget to like us on Facebook!