Cherry Blossom Run Nearly Triples Donations From Last Year as of Race Time

WASHINGTON – Credit unions raised approximately $190,000 before the starting gun went off for the 2003 Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Mile Run and money is still rolling in. Total funds raised last year came to $65,000. The final tally for the 2003 race will not be in for a couple of weeks, according to CUNA Vice President of Communications and Media Outreach Pat Keefe. Keefe said the winners of the coveted Credit Union Cup had not been tabulated as of press time. CUNA and NAFCU both had race teams out. Representing the CUNA Striders were President and CEO Dan Mica, Political Director Karen Kincer, Grassroots Manager Gretchen Graf, Communications Specialist Tom McElligott, and Legislative Affairs Manager Leon Peace. CUNA Vice President of Political Affairs Richard Gose had to drop out prior to the race due to an unrelated injury. NAFCU entered two teams: Federally Charged including President and CEO Fred Becker, Regulatory Compliance Counsel Eric Envall, and Graphic Designer/Copy Writer Alicia Hosmer and CU Later including Director of Planning, Programming & Special Projects Joseph Boyle, Member Service Center Manager Gail Gronlund, and Director of Marketing Peter Taylor. CUNA and NAFCU also fielded a combined total of 36 volunteers on the sidelines cheering runners on and handing out water. “All the credit union volunteers for the Credit Union Cherry Blossom run deserve our applause, but those efforts really represent one beat of a vibrant heart giving life to credit union volunteerism and cooperative spirit,” Becker commented. CUNA Board Member Juri Valdov, CEO of Northwest Federal Credit Union of Herndon, Va., and Holly Herman, CEO of Kraft Foods Federal Credit Union of White Plains, N.Y., also ran the 10-mile trek. The men and women’s winners of the April 6 race were John Korir of Kenya with a time of 46:55 and Olga Romanova of Russia clocking in at 53:42. [email protected]