Greta’s Run for Imagine
The 9th Annual Greta’s Run for Imagine will be held in-person for the first time in 2 years! Join us on Sunday May 22, 2022 for an official USATF 5K race through Westfield, NJ. This year, we are introducing a Memory Walk – a 0.6 mile route where families of the community can walk in memory of anyone who has died. Memory Walk Registrants can purchase a sign to decorate with the name of their loved one to line the walk route and memorialize their family member.
Greta’s Run began 9 years ago when a group of Greta Schoenemann’s friends decided they wanted to honor her memory with a 5k race. Greta had died on September 15, 2002 due to injuries sustained when a branch fell on a group of students as they were eating lunch outside of Westfield High School. This year marks the 20th anniversary of Greta’s death and the 9th year the race has been run in her honor.
Sadly, many of us have experienced the loss of someone we love and this year’s event is in honor of all of them. We invite everyone to join us as we run, walk or roll in honor of Greta and all those we love who have died. At Imagine, we see this run as an act of honor, as an act of mourning and of remembrance for our families and our community.
Before the 5K race, we invite everyone to join us for a Memory Walk when we will provide time and space for all to walk in honor of those who have died but are not forgotten.
Proceeds from the race support Imagine’s free peer support groups for children and families coping with grief, as well as Imagine’s grief education programs which are available for schools and businesses looking to better support their communities. Additionally, Imagine staff are available to provide support in the immediate aftermath of a loss in a school community, organization or place of business.
We are so thankful for our sponsors thus far for the 9th Annual Greta’s Run for Imagine. A big thank you to our Memory Walk Sponsor: Toriello Family in honor of MTT Memorial Fund and thank you to our hydration sponsor Westfield Pediatric Dental Group, and shirt sponsors Family Investors Company and Rossi Funeral Home. Your sponsorships help underwrite the event and help ensure that every dollar goes directly to providing free grief support for children and families. To become a sponsor, please contact Angela Marie Tayco at angela@imaginenj.org or 908-228-3360.
To register for Greta’s Run and/or the Memory Walk, please visitimaginenj.org/gretasrun. We look forward to coming together as a community to honor and remember those we love who have died.
Imagine’s Executive Director, Lindsay Schambach would like to extend this invitation to you: ‘We hope that you will join us and walk alongside our families, our children, and our community, and let everyone know that their loss matters, that they are not alone, and they are never forgotten.’
Imagine offers grief and loss education and training to the community and free year-round grief support groups for children ages 3-18 who have had a parent, sibling, or close family member die. Concurrent groups are available for parents and guardians of the children in our groups, and young adults 18-30. Imagine also offers a support group for Spanish speaking adults. For more information, please contact Imagine at 908-264-3100 or info@imaginenj.org.
