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Friends of Prairie Home Cemetery to hold inaugural "tombstone trot" 5K; commissioners note community concerns
Summary
The Friends of Prairie Home Cemetery will hold an inaugural 5K run/walk inside Prairie Home Cemetery on Oct. 20; organizers have raised more than $8,000, plan street closures and barricades, and the commission discussed online concerns and steps to keep the event respectful.
Friends of Prairie Home Cemetery organizers plan an inaugural "tombstone trot" 5K inside Prairie Home Cemetery on Sunday, Oct. 20, organizers and cemetery staff told the commission at its Oct. 14 meeting.
Karen (the cemetery director) said the Friends have raised over $8,000 for the event so far and that Silver Circle Sports is managing registration and the on-site logistics. As of a week before the event, Karen said approximately 118 people had registered and organizers expected registrations to increase "by 25 to 100%".
Several commissioners and participants discussed community feedback. Karen said she had seen unfavorable comments on Facebook but that she expects the run to be respectful and noted the Friends view the event as a source of revenue for cemetery maintenance. "I have seen on Facebook that there were some comments that were not favorable to doing a run walk in the cemetery," she said.
Commissioners discussed specific safeguards: Prairie Home Drive (the cemeterys main east-west road) will be closed for the run under a street-closing permit; barricades and a staff person at each entrance will be used; volunteers are still sought (organizers indicated they could use as many as 15 more volunteers). Chair noted Silver Circle Sportss experience in managing runs and said the event should be professionally run and conclude by mid-morning.
Commissioners cited precedent for respectful cemetery events and told staff to proceed with the planned controls; one participant who had observed similar events in Milwaukee and at Forest Home Cemetery said those runs had gone well.
The commission encouraged members to volunteer or attend; Karen said staff will put up flags along Prairie Home Drive and handle traffic and entrances for the event. The commission did not take formal action at the meeting beyond the discussion and logistical confirmations.
The event is scheduled to begin Sunday morning with a separate free 1K for children. The commission's next meeting is set for Dec. 9.
