Off to the races, into the treasury

More than 1,000 people — adults, children and teens — ran through the streets around Newport Harbor High School on Saturday as part of an annual fundraiser for the school.

The 20th Harbor Heritage Run, held by the school’s PTA every year, raises money so the school’s PTA can buy new computers and software.

Runners like Colleen Barney and her two daughters, Julia, 9, and Rachel, 11, got up early to participate.

The races included a 2-kilometer run that started at 8 a.m. and a 5-kilometer run at 9 a.m. The last two races, called the “Kids Klassic,” were for children 5 to 10 and were held on the school’s track.

Barney and her daughters participated in all the races.

“We run every year, and each year we try to run faster,” Barney said. “This year, we all ran a minute faster.”

The route for the 2- and 5-kilometer races began on East 16th Street. The race with the most participants was the 5-kilometer run. Most of the runners wore white T-shirts given to them when they paid their fee to register for the race. The shirts were emblazoned with a colorful depiction of the high school surrounded by orange groves — a painting of what the 75-year-old school may have looked like when it opened to students.

PTA member, Lisa Boler, who chaired the event, said this year she expects to raise about $30,000. About 1,300 people signed up for the race this year, and Boler, who has volunteered at the fundraiser for 12 years, said the PTA has been raising more than $30,000 each year for five years.

“It’s not just a money-maker,” Boler said. “It’s also a community-maker. The fact that it’s still going on is very exciting. We’re very pleased to have the race continuing.”

The school community looks forward to the annual event.

Some, like Boler’s 17-year-old daughter, Leslie, have grown up with it. Leslie has been running in the races since she was 5. This is the last race for the Newport Harbor High School senior before she goes off to college.

Each year, booths representing nonprofit groups and businesses are set up at the event. This year, among the 23 booths were representatives from the Environmental Nature Center, Hoag Hospital’s Cancer Center and Project Wipeout, a nonprofit that teaches about water safety.

The food for the event was donated by local restaurants.

To celebrate the 20th year of the run, former fundraiser PTA organizers rode in pace cars with Supt. Jeffrey Hubbard at the beginning of the races.

Esteban Hernandez of Costa Mesa said he hopes his $25 fee helps the school refurbish its science computer lab.

“I don’t have any children that go to this school. I’m a runner and I like to help raise money for good causes,” said Hernandez, who plans to run the Los Angeles Marathon next year.