700+ Run In Chesco 5K Color Run To Combat Opioid Addiction

EXTON, PA — More than 700 men, women and children were doused with colorful powder Saturday as the ran in the sixth annual Chester County Color 5K in Exton Park.

The runners laughed as they were sprayed while jogged along the path for exercise and to raise money to help fight drug addiction.

An estimated $85,000 was raised to combat the ongoing opioid crisis plaguing our nation.

In 2021, Chester County reported 101 accidental drug overdoses.

The color run was initiated by Chester County Commissioner Michelle Kichline in 2016.

“Events like the Color 5K are bittersweet,” Kichline said, as she addressed the Saturday morning crowd.

“We are all here to enjoy the race and to raise awareness and money, but at the same time, we reflect on the senselessness of 101 beautiful lives lost to addiction in 2021, and the tremendous struggles of those who continue to battle substance use disorder."

To date, nearly $200,000 for the County’s Community Outreach Prevention and Education program to help those with substance abuse issues.

The COPE program provides 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week emergency room support for overdose survivors and their families at all hospitals in Chester County.

Kichline said COPE counselors have successfully engaged with 98% of overdose survivors in emergency rooms, helping over 880 people between ages 14 and 76, who experienced an overdose with treatment.

John R. Gailey III and JoEllen Berger Charitable Fund are the prime sponsors of the event.

The event also featured displays with information about recovery services. A supply of the medication Naloxone used to reverse overdoses was also available to those requesting it.