5K run continues Jill Behrman's legacy for seventh straight year

The seventh annual Jill Behrman Run for the End Zone, held in memory of former IU student Jill Behrman, takes place Saturday. The event features a five-kilometer run and walk and a one-mile "fun walk." All proceeds will assist the Jill Behrman Emerging Leader Scholarship and Jill's House, which will be a temporary home for families of patients receiving care at the Midwest Proton Radiotherapy Institute in Bloomington.\nRace Director Joanne Orrange said event organizers hope to involve the Bloomington community more this year.\n"I think we're just looking to expand our race a little bit, and the community is an area that in the past we have always invited and looked to get the word out," Orrange said. \nA safety and wellness fair, which will teach people about living safe and healthy lives, will also be a part of the event. The Wellness Fair is a joint project between the IU Division of Recreational Sports and the Bloomington Chamber of Commerce. \nWellness Fair Director Chris Arvin said he is most excited about a new project this year that offers free pedometers to the first 500 IU faculty and staff members who come to the fair. The offer is part of an effort to encourage health among faculty and staff.\n"We know the adult population is not nearly active enough," Arvin said. "We know that of all the things most likely to do ... they're most likely to walk because it isn't as time-consuming as other physical activities."\nBut Arvin said the main goal of the event is to raise money for the charities involved.\n"I think the most meaningful connection is the connection with the cause," Arvin said.\nThe Jill Behrman Emerging Leader Scholarship "recognizes exceptional IU students on the basis of three principles: leadership, character and ethical values," according to a press release. The scholarship was established by Behrman's family in 2001 following their daughter's disappearance in 2000.\nArvin said he believes the scholarship, offered to undergraduate students by the Division of Recreational Sports, is a good way to remember Behrman.\n"Every year in April, when those (scholarships) are awarded, that's a really cool thing to see those kids kind of shine through and to see that scholarship awarded in Jill's memory," Arvin said.\nLaura Wee, creative manager for IU Recreational Sports, who's in charge of marketing and advertisement for the event, agreed with Arvin and added that the Run for the End Zone is a good way to give back to the IU community.\n"I think that this is a really great opportunity for the campus to show its support for the Behrman family because the race proceeds benefit a really amazing project," Wee said. \nOrrange and her committee began putting this year's event together in May. Students, faculty, staff and Bloomington citizens worked through the summer coordinating all aspects of the event.\nOrrange said she believed the benefits for both Jill's House and the scholarship fund make all of their hard work worthwhile.\n"Doing this I really feel like it's one of those things that makes you feel like you're really making a difference," Orrange said.