Olentangy Liberty High School rising seniors Aadi Joshi, Sam Perez, and Louie Perry, along with William Wang, a rising junior, are organizing the Patriot 5K scheduled for July 4. This family-friendly event features a competitive walk/run and aims to unite participants of all ages and fitness levels for physical activity, while celebrating community and patriotism.
The Patriot 5K began in 2019, initiated by a group of Olentangy Liberty High School cross country seniors who wanted to create an event that gave back to the community, supported their team, and provided a fun community activity. Following the success of the first Patriot 5K, the race has become an annual tradition.
Starting in April, the students spent four hours weekly organizing the race by securing Liberty Park as the race venue, advertising the event and acquiring sponsorships. The students contacted potential sponsors by emailing and calling various companies to cover the costs associated with booking the park and collaborating with Race Penguin. Additional funding came from local businesses, individual donations, online contributions through the race registration website, and entry costs from participants.
Joshi explained, “Louie played a key part in the social media aspect. For example, he created Instagram posts that brought more attention to our race, which led to more registrations. Additionally, William and Sam Perez, another rising senior, played a big part in contacting potential sponsors and general outreach.” The first significant milestone of organizing the Patriot 5K was securing sponsors and trustees.
Through extensive networking, the team secured seven-plus sponsors to move forward with the 5K. With the help of Race Penguin, their main sponsor, they were able to design and create everything needed for the 5K, such as t-shirts, racing bibs and course design.
Wang elaborated, “The first major milestone was securing those sponsors. Most of our sponsors come from local businesses wanting to support a great cause led by the youth. Examples of sponsors are Aladdin’s Eatery, Gillespie Law, LLC, PNC Bank, etc. These sponsors will be promoted throughout our race via our social media page, T-shirts, and a multitude of other ways.”
The last major milestone was event promotion through social media platforms such as Instagram and Facebook, and handing out flyers around Powell during the Memorial Parade on May 27. Additionally, Olentangy Liberty High School promoted the Patriot 5K through its social media accounts and newsletter.
Overall, the planning of the Patriot 5K reflects the incredible dedication, hard work, and collaboration of the organizers, students, sponsors, and volunteers involved in making an event that will be memorable and meaningful for all participants.
If you are interested in helping out this wonderful cause, please visit @patriot5K on Instagram.
This article was written by William Wang, an Olentangy Liberty High School student and a member of the Powell Youth Council, a 15-student-governed nonprofit organization recognized and partnered with the Powell government that Wang created in March of 2022. Powell Youth Council’s purpose is to give a voice and power to the youth of Powell in local decisions and projects, show how local leaders create projects and decisions, and motivate the youth to help their community.
