Deadline today for Westside run

Today is the registration deadline for the Leadership Kaua‘i Pi‘ina Hoku Follow Our Future Leaders Fun Run, set for next Saturday, April 11, at 7 a.m. in Kekaha.

There are 2- and 5-kilometer distances, and all from ages under 6 to over 41 are invited to participate. Participants are encouraged to gather pledges for the fund-raising event, though children 6 and under may participate for free.

Minimum pledges are $25 for those ages 15 and up, and $15 per child ages 7 to 14, according to members of Leadership Kaua‘i.

Race packets include T-shirts, and are available the morning of the event. The registration desk opens at 6:15 a.m. The 5K begins at the intersection of Kala Road and Kaumuali‘i Highway near the Kekaha Neighborhood Center, and the 2K event begins at the highway entrance to Kikiaola Small Boat Harbor.

Both routes end at Waimea Canyon Park.

There are awards for male and female participants in five age groups in both distances.

For more information, please contact Brenda Jose, 246-8727, 346-9722, or brenda@leadershipkauai.org.

Organizers in Leadership Kaua‘i’s Pi‘ina Hoku program are juniors in high school who are getting training on what it means to be an island leader of tomorrow, and in small groups plan and implement projects.

Organizers of the fun run, including Sarah Faraola, hope to have 200 participants in the event, she said via e-mail.

Leadership Kaua‘i is a nonprofit organization. The Pi‘ina Hoku program offers juniors in high school the opportunity to develop their leadership skills collaboratively with a diverse group of other young adults from the island through community-service projects, she said.

The purpose of the fundraiser is to raise money for next year’s Pi‘ina Hoku program.

In this program, participants gain skills to make them better leaders, help them understand the importance of the island, and how to help make it sustainable, she said.