The route of the 5k walk crossed back and forth through the center of Clarkston, passing businesses and landmarks such as the Clarkston Community Center, Thriftown, Georgia Piedmont Technical College and Clarkston City Hall. As they walked the participants smiled and laughed. They were fundraising for a good cause.
Community members gathered on Saturday, April 27th for a 5k walk to raise funds for the Atlanta Area School for the Deaf (AASD) Parent Involvement Program and in-home tutoring program. 84 people were there at 8:30 a.m., including families, students and staff of the AASD.
The principal of AASD, Vanessa Robisch, gave a brief speech before the walk began, and City Council member Dean Moore and Mayor Emanuel Ransom were both in attendance.
An AASD student named Elizabeth Porter and her mother Janet Porter commented on the walk after they finished walking it. “It’s very important,” signed Elizabeth.
Her mother said a unique advantage of AASD is that her daughter is able to come home to her family each night. AASD, unlike many other schools for the deaf, is a day school that students travel to and from every morning and afternoon.
“It’s so nice to be in a school where she can come home and be part of the family at night,” she said. “It’s like a second home.”
The event served as the kick-off activity for the Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety month, a series of events focused on encouraging awareness of pedestrians and cyclists in the city of Clarkston, and fostering outdoor activity and healthy habits. Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Month organized by the Clarkston Active Living Initiative (CALI).
The route began at the school’s campus on Indian Creek and ran through the recently refurbished Milam Park before circling back to the starting point. Four Clarkston Development Foundation staff walked or ran: Geanie Jones, Bobbi Kay, Justin Leverett, and Jeremy Lewis.
Dona Harris, School Social Worker at the AASD, announced after the event that the school had received enough donations for the Parent Involvement Program to provide in-home tutoring for 11 students.
“The number of students to be tutored may seem small but it is huge in the academic difference it will make in the achievements of a student and their family,” said Ms. Harris.
Contributions to the Parent Involvement Program are continually accepted at throughrally.org. or sent to Atlanta Area School for the Deaf at 890 North Indian Creek Drive, Clarkston, GA 30021.