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Date: 10/11/2023
EAST LONGMEADOW — Thanksgiving is famously a time for family, but it is also a time for giving.
Thousands of people have found a way to combine the two by participating in the Stuffing the Pantry 5K run/walk on Thanksgiving morning. The fundraiser benefits Open Pantry Community Services, a private, nonprofit organization that assists people in Greater Springfield who are hungry, experiencing homelessness or disadvantaged.
The event has become a holiday tradition for many people. Organizer Ronald Berger said, “You’ll get registrations for six people, you know, families with children … It’s a great way to show your kids how to do something for others.”
Stuffing the Pantry 5K began in 2011. “Two of us [organizers] had been on the committee that started the Bright Nights race and we wanted to do something a little different,” Berger said. Because Berger already ran on Thanksgiving mornings with a group of about 20 people, he and Charlie Casartello decided to create the Stuffing the Pantry 5K.
Berger said, “Immediately, we hooked up with American Saw,” which is now a part of Stanley Black & Decker, “because they’ve got the perfect place to have a race,” with a large parking lot. “They’ve been great to let us have it there, even with them changing owners.”
The walk and run will kick off at 8 a.m. on Nov. 23 at Lenox American Saw, 301 Chestnut St. Participants can choose to run five kilometers or walk two miles. Berger admitted that when the event began, he thought the walking portion would not be popular. “I thought runners are runners,” he said, but many people choose to walk. Last year, about 250 people walked the course.
The relatively flat course is a figure-eight around the industrial area of East Longmeadow, beginning and ending at Lenox American Saw. The course map can be found at mapmyrun.com/routes/view/1790441066.
“Runners get a really nice shirt, refreshments after the race” and “a nice flat course to run, with police and volunteers along the route,” Berger said. Event T-shirts are guaranteed for those who register by Nov. 6. People can pick up their numbers at 4Run3, 78 Center Sq., Monday through Wednesday, Nov. 20–22, between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. There are prizes awarded to men and women in the under 18, 18-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60 and over age categories.
The only year the race has not been run in person was 2020, when there was a virtual race due to the coronavirus pandemic. Berger said that even then, there was a considerable number of registrants. Despite the race back to being in-person, a virtual option is still available. Berger noted some people are no longer in the area but still want to participate.
The number of people who choose to spend their Thanksgiving mornings at the event has grown over the years. Last year, there were 1,296 entries, the most participants in the fundraiser’s history.
Registration is $30 per adult and $20 for age 18 and under and a food donation. For those who register on the day of the event, the registration is $5 more. For people who will not be participating in the walk or run, but still want to give, there is a donation option on the event website, stuffingthepantry.org.
“We have always tried to keep the entry fee relatively low, compared to some of the other area races, given that for so many, it has become a family tradition,” Berger said.
Participant registrations are only a portion of the total money raised by the event. “The majority of the money raised comes from our generous sponsors. One hundred percent of the money raised goes to Open Pantry,” Berger said.
There are three sponsorship levels. Sponsors give a donation of $500, Major Sponsors give $1,000 and Lead Sponsors give $2,000. Those who sponsor the event receive their name featured on a race T-shirt, recognition on the website, two complimentary race/walk registrations and T-shirts for each $500 donation and a commemorative certificate.
Berger said the number of sponsors has grown as well. “We had maybe a dozen sponsors in the first year,” and raised about $18,000. “In 2022, our race donated more than $52,000 and 4,017 pounds of food which directly supported Open Pantry’s Emergency Food Pantry,” the event’s website states. Berger said, “I think this year will bring us over half a million [dollars]” for a 12-year total.
“Being on Thanksgiving has given the race a particular look, with participants wearing turkey hats and occasionally, full turkey costumes. I wear one every year, so I guess you could say we encourage it … It truly is one of the most upbeat events in which you will participate, and that’s probably what accounts for so many of the same faces returning year after year. It’s the perfect cause for a Thanksgiving run,” Berger said of the Open Pantry and food insecurity. “You feel good about doing something for someone in need and then you eat all that food, why wouldn’t you want to share it?”