Sozo Children announces the 10th Annual Run for a Reason 5k which will be held during the week of May 9-15, 2021. The charity 5K benefitting Sozo Children, a Birmingham-based ministry serving the needs of vulnerable children in Uganda, will take place virtually and allow varying levels of participation.
‘We were thrilled with the level of participation last year,” said Amanda Straka, Engagement Director for Sozo Children. “When we moved the race to a virtual online format we were just hoping to maintain a sense of normalcy during the quarantines but supporters stepped up and we had the highest participation levels ever. It’s a great way for people around the country—around the world—to participate safely and support a great cause,” she said.
Runners can enroll online, challenge friends through social media, and compete for prizes virtually. Sozo is one of a grown number of charities around the nation converting traditional marathons to virtual runs where runners can participate for fun or compete for prizes by setting their own routes and reporting official times online. Proceeds for the run will support at risk children in Uganda and some of the local programs of the ministry.
“Sozo started out of an immediate need to care for the most vulnerable children in Uganda,” explains Suzanne Owens, CEO of Sozo Children. “While serving in Uganda, we witnessed children living in a children's home going without food for days at a time and being totally neglected and abused on many levels. We felt the Holy Spirit move and Sozo Children became a reality soon after,” said Owens.
The ministry began when Owens and her team met a three-year-old girl who could not bathe due to lack of water and whose feet were raw from rat bites. Initially, the new ministry took in 17 children from one former children’s home. Now beginning its 10th year, Sozo has grown to serve 120 children, providing housing, medical care, education, and more. Sozo also leads Kid’s Club—a twice-weekly Bible club in the local village community. As many as 500 children, some of whom walk miles to attend, share snacks and devotional time. The ministry recently resumed mission trips to Uganda and is planning for the 2022 Sozo Children’s Choir “Miracle Tour.”
5K Participants can register online www.sozochildren.org/runforareason now and throughout the event. Each participant will receive a swag packet including a Sozo Run for a Reason shirt regardless of whether they are running for fun or competitively.
