Alecsrun.com

The Alec William Nelson Charitable Corporation
Help, hope and happiness for children
President 26 Sellger Ct
Adriann A. Raschdorf-Nelson Dix Hills NY 11746-7847
Vice President
William B. Nelson www.alecsplayground.com
April 2010
As Alec’s parents and founders of his charitable corporation, we have heard from quite a few people who are interested in Alec’s Run and wanted to know more information both about the run and what we do with the corporation we set up in Alec’s name. We are happy to answer any questions you may have and we welcome your interest. Alec’s Run is a race that is held around the streets of Dix Hills on the fourth Saturday of April every year. It is a 4 mile race for runners and walkers that starts at 9:30- and there is a children’s Fun Run, a half mile race that begins at 9am.
This is the 6th year that we are holding this run which serves two purposes. It celebrates the life of our son, Alec, and it serves to educate people about the dangers vehicles can pose to young children, especially the blind zone behind cars which can extend to the length of most driveways in some vehicles. Alec wasn’t seen six years ago when, at 16 months, a loving grandparent backed over him. Over 100 children a year are killed by backovers. If a defective toy existed that killed that many children, it would have been pulled off the shelves immediately. Our mission is to raise awareness about this danger, since Alec was killed over 600- six hundred- children have died the same way.
Alec’s Run raises money that helps worthy causes. We support Kids and Cars; a child advocacy group that we worked with in Washington to get legislation passed that has car manufacturers addressing this problem. We were gratified to have had legislation passed on Valentine’s Day in 2008 that will mandate certain safety measures in cars by 2011. We remain hard at work on raising awareness and on consumer education-it is not a child’s death caused by negligent parents or caregivers, but a real visibility issue that will now be addressed by car manufacturers.
We also support Hospice Care Network, an extraordinary not-for-profit that provides not only end-of-life care, but invaluable bereavement counseling which is available free of charge to anyone who has suffered a loss. They are especially important for the work they do with children, the so-called “forgotten mourners” because of the special way they deal, or don’t deal, with death and grief.
Finally, we established Alec’s Fund in our school district which enables needy students to do things previously out of their financial reach. They now can go on a class trip, purchase a book at the book fair, a plant for their parent at the spring sale; all things that help make their school life as ‘normal’ as possible. No one likes to feel left out, or left behind because of lack of money.
We are asking for your support at the run- it is a fun, fun day that celebrates Alec’s life with the community. With their entries, the children all get a long-sleeved t-shirt and a medal as they cross the finish line; the adults all receive a long sleeved t-shirt. It is a great experience to share with your children, and then you can go out and run or walk-we are very walk friendly-four miles. You can read more about what we do at alecsplayground.com. Thank you for your support,
Adriann and Bill