Paige’s Butterfly Run is returning to its roots.
Since 2008, the pediatric cancer research fundraiser has taken place in downtown Syracuse in conjunction with Taste of Syracuse. Last year, the COVID-19 pandemic forced the event to turn virtual, and this year, the organization has decided to split the difference with a hybrid event.
Palmer Elementary — the site of Paige’s Butterfly Run for its first decade — will host the live event portion of the 25th Annual Paige’s Butterfly Run on Saturday, Aug. 7. While the Syracuse run usually draws upwards of 2,500 runners, the live event has been capped at 250 participants with a fundraising minimum of $250.
“Due to the extent of the unknowns going forward and the current NYS restrictions on mass gatherings during the COVID-19 pandemic, we have decided to host a hybrid event this year,” reads a statement from Paige’s Butterfly Run. “Our goal is to give you the opportunity to still run/walk Paige’s Butterfly Run together, but safely apart.”
Runners and walkers can still participate virtually between Aug. 7 and 12.
Paige Yeomans Arnold was a first-grader at Palmer when she was diagnosed with leukemia in 1993. Sadly, she passed away in 1994 due to complications from a bone marrow transplant.
Three years after Paige’s death, a group of her teachers approached her parents, Chris Arnold and Ellen Yeomans, with the idea of holding a walk/run to honor Paige and raise money for a scholarship fund and what is now the Dr. William J. Waters Center for Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders at Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital.
“The butterfly was selected as a symbol of the event not only because she was so fond of them, but because they typified her: beautiful and gentle, but strong beyond imagining,” reads the website for Paige’s Butterfly Run, pbrun.org.
To date, Paige’s Butterfly Run has raised over $3.7 million for pediatric cancer research and patient programs at Golisano.
Registration for the live and virtual run/walk is $40. Visit runsignup.com/pbr2021 for more information or to sign up. Online registration closes 11:59 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 4, and Palmer participants can pick up their race-day packets Aug. 5 at Fleet Feet in East Syracuse.
Runners and walkers who attend the live Palmer event will be divided into waves of 50 people with a specific start time. Participants must adhere to social distancing guidelines and must wear a mask throughout the event when not running/walking or when staying six feet apart is not possible.
