Justin Hinch-Keller was running around the Irving School gym like crazy on Thursday.  He and his fellow second-graders were screaming enthusiastically as they trotted around the gym as part of a Laps for Life fundraiser for the St. Jude Quincy to Peoria Run, which benefits St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.  “I didn’t know I could run that fast,” Justin, 7, said as he took a short break during his 30-minute physical education class at Irving.  He smiled broadly and talked about how much fun he was having, but then his expression changed and his tone became more serious.  “We’re doing this for the St. Jude kids that have cancer and can’t walk,” he said in a tender, sincere voice. “If we didn’t help them out, who would stop this cancer?”

Laps for Life organizers say that’s what the fundraiser is all about: Kids helping kids.

“Laps for Life is important because every child has the opportunity to make life better for a child who is not well,” said Nancy Waters, a Laps for Life organizer. “They are making a difference in the life of a child.”

Irving’s 170 students participated during their physical education classes on Thursday and today. They recently learned about St. Jude during a fundraiser kick off, and they were asked to bring in quarters, dollars, whatever they could give.  Some break open their piggy banks. Some donate their allowances. Some ask their parents to pitch in.  “They have very big hearts,” Waters said.

Any child who brings in $25 or more gets a T-shirt, but all the children receive temporary tattoos, a St. Jude pencil and a certificate of participation.  Irving Principal Sharon Phillips said the children understand the reason they’re running around the school’s gym.
“They know there are other kids in trouble,” she said. “They know they’re doing something for somebody else, that they’re a part of something bigger.”

Phillips said that Irving students participate in a service project each month, and they chose the St. Jude Run for their April project. She said it fits in well with the school’s focus on teaching the “Seven Habits.”

Schools in Liberty, Rushville and Astoria will participate in Laps for Life events later this month. Liberty students will participate for the third year; Rushville students for the second year; and Astoria students for the first year.  Waters said that Laps for Life events raised $11,332 in the first two years.  The money benefits the St. Jude Quincy to Peoria Run, which is a relay-style run in August in which runners raise at least $500 apiece to participate in the 130-mile trek from Quincy to Peoria.

The Quincy runners join 17 other running groups to kick off the St. Jude Telethon at the Peoria Civic Center.