Braveheart Run unites community members, students to support Aadyn Rae
In the chill of Saturday’s morning, around fifty runners from Utah State and the Logan community crowded together in front of the Taggart Student Center (TSC) for the 6th annual Braveheart 5K/10K run.
“This is a fairly good turn out this year,” said Freeman Judd, a senior majoring in civil engineering.
The race could be run as either a 5K or a 10K event, depending on the discretion of the runners. Starting at the entrance of the TSC, runners ran around the USU campus, completing two laps for the 5K or four laps for the 10K run.
“It’s been fun,” said Audrey Bateman, a freshman majoring in mechanical engineering. “My favorite part is probably the kid’s fun run.”
Two friends, Gracie Hawkins and Jessie Brown, were searching for a race when they heard about the Braveheart event.
“We’ve been running lately, so we wanted to find a 10K to run,” said Hawkins, a sophomore majoring in social work.
The Braveheart 5K/10K is a charity race organized by USU students. Judd oversaw the organization of the event and helped collect donations from local businesses.
“The donations we got from the businesses will be raffled off to the racers, and that’s how we recruited people to come. But the race entry fee that everyone paid will go to the Up-to-3 program here on campus. (Up-to-3 donations) go to families with children under the age of three who have serious or unique medical issues. It helps them with whatever medical bills they have,” Judd said.
The Up-to-3 organization works to help the development of children under 3 years old who have disabilities or developmental delays. The program provides services for families and children living in Cache, Box Elder and Rich Counties, according to the program’s website. Services include physical therapy, occupational therapy, hearing and vision consultation and specialized instruction for autistic children.
“I think it’s really cool they do a race for Up-to-3 so people know about it,” said Brown, a junior majoring in family consumer and human development.
The race donations were originally going to support Aadyn Rae Olsen, a baby girl who was born with type 1 spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). However, before the event, 9-month-old Aadyn passed away in February from her genetic disease.
“It was a big blow to us for sure. But we knew we needed to still run the race,” Judd said. “It’s definitely in her memory. It’s in her name.”
Aadyn’s mother, Brittany Rostron, was running at the event with her two children. Rostron said she didn’t know what SMA was until her daughter was diagnosed at 3 months old with the disease.
“When they told me, I didn’t sleep for weeks. I was afraid I would go to sleep and she was going to be gone when I woke up. It was a very hard road,” she said.
SMA is a genetic disease that affects the nervous system controlling voluntary muscle movement, according to the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) website.
“It’s hard for all of us,” Rostron said. “She made us appreciate a lot. You just appreciate little things, like if she would smile I was excited.”
The Braveheart 5K/10K organizers still planned on giving the race donations to Rostron and her family even after Aadyn’s death. But Rostron asked if the donations could be given to Up-to-3, the program where the organizers had originally heard about Aadyn.
“I would rather whatever money they raise go to someone who could use it now, than me to pay off a headstone,” Rostron said. “I would rather it help children.”
— ashley.ruth.stilson@aggiemail.usu.edu