St. Jude Runners
The 27th Annual St. Jude Memphis to Peoria Run, scheduled from July 29 – August 2, will once again count West Peorians—including Jimmy Dillon and Phil Roberts—among its participants.
This will be Dillon’s seventh year. Dillon—West Peoria’s county board member for District 7 and West Peoria Township Clerk—first began running in this 465-mile event after a conversation about the race with Jim Ardis at Peoria’s Christmas parade. Dillon states, “I say every year will be my last, but then after being down there for a couple of days I realize it is the least that I could do. The hospital really is an amazing place. I have raised a decent amount of money over the years. It’s not really about the run itself but about the fundraising and the kids.”
Roberts, a West Peoria Ward 4 alderman, looks forward to his third year in the race, which he considers to be “an awesome experience, both physically and spiritually.” He thinks that one of the highlights of the trip is running at night. Participants are on the road twenty-four hours a day.
Roberts’ niece Michelle was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma, a type of bone cancer, at the end of 2004. She received treatment in Peoria as well as at the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis—giving Roberts a very personal reason for running in this race.
According to Roberts, “I spent a weekend in November 2005 with Michelle and my brother in Memphis. It is something I’m very glad I did. I was touched by the sight of the children and how positive and happy they seemed while enduring this terrible disease. Thankfully, Michelle is doing great; she is cancer free and will be attending Eastern Illinois this fall for her junior year.”
In addition to Dillon and Roberts, runners for the 2007 race included West Peorians Carrie and Brandon Kleist, Terry Hackman, Jr., Christie Getz, and Angie Perrilles. The names of the 2008 participants were not available in time for this issue of the West Peoria News.
Begun in 1982, the St. Jude Memphis to Peoria Run was begun by co-founders Mike McCoy and Gene Pratt as a way to raise money for their favorite charity—St. Jude. Participants drive to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis and then run back—relay style—to Peoria’s St. Jude Midwest Affiliate.
The St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, opened in 1962 by entertainer Danny Thomas, is the largest center in the United States for the research and treatment of pediatric cancer and other childhood diseases. All children are treated regardless of race, religion or ability to pay. St. Jude shares their research with doctors and clinics all over the world.
The West Peoria News extends our best wishes for a safe and successful run to all of this year’s West Peoria participants.