The young superheroes of Northwest Indiana protected the Lake County Fair Grounds from all sorts of villains during the 2015 Kids N’ Capes run/walk. Thanks to Hometown Happenings, and of course the superheroes that worked tirelessly to defend the park, Lake County Fair is now ridded of all evil.
Hometown Happenings does a lot of community runs, walks and other events throughout the year. This event is aimed at being family focused, while also supporting charities that benefit children.
“I wanted an event that I would have wanted to go to when I was a kid. It pains me that I can’t participate, myself. The purpose of the event is to get the parents to participate with the kids and enjoy all of the stations together,” President of Hometown Happenings, Tim Fealy said.
The organizations that benefited from the event were the Food Bank of Northwest Indiana and Girls on the Run. The goal was to provide 200 meals for kids in need and provide lesson materials and healthy snacks for a Girls on the Run team.
“Girls on the Run is an after school ten week program in the spring and fall for girls third through eighth grade. They inspire girls to be joyful, healthy and confident using experience based curriculum that creatively integrates running. The girls learn lessons about getting to know themselves, getting along with others and being a part of the community. Along the way, they train to run a 5K,” Council Director at Girls on the Run of Northwest Indiana, Jill Schlueter-Kim explained
After the kids and parents ran/walked the race, the kids tested their superhero skills after completing the walk by going to each station lined up in the park. There were grappling hooks, water fights, Frisbee throwing, and some foam noodle combat with the villains.
The men and women behind the costumes came from the charity organization Costumes for a Cause. They provided all superheroes and villains for the kids to meet. Costumes for a Cause has over 400 members and goes to a lot of events in the Chicagoland area and has been helping out with this event for three years now.
“I love dressing up and seeing the kids faces, even the adults faces when they see us; they just light up. It is so much fun!” Midwest regional president of Costumes for a Cause, Scott Whipple said.
After the kids successfully defeated the villains, everyone enjoyed complementary pizza from Carriage Court Pizza and took a break from crime fighting.
By the look on the faces of the children participating, you could tell that they were not only excited to meet their heroes, but also took their job of fighting off the villains very seriously. Getting to be a superhero for the day, while also benefiting organizations that helped other children, turned out to be a great way to spend a hot summer day.