KOCHI: Running club Soles of Kochi is collaborating with the District Jail at Kakkanad in an initiative to feed the poor with its second annual ‘Run a Mile, Share a Meal’ marathon scheduled for Sunday. About 400 people participated in the run last year.
“The Ernakulam District Jail proposed the idea of ‘Run a Mile, Share a Meal’ marathon to create awareness and raise funds for its Share a Meal scheme,”
said Ramesh Kanjilimadhom, president of Soles of Kochi which conducts the Spice Coast Marathon every November. “The registration fee is `300, a significant portion of which will be given to the Share a Meal scheme.”
In the jail’s Share a Meal initiative, people can buy a `25 food coupon from the Kakkanad district jail store which sells food prepared by prisoners. “The purchased coupon is pasted on a notice board outside the store and can be used by anyone who cannot afford a meal. The free meal includes five chappatis and an egg or vegetable curry,” said George Chacko, welfare officer of Kakkanad District Jail.
“The anonymity offered to the giver and receiver of the food coupon is the notable feature of the initiative,” said Kanjilimadhom. Unused coupons on the board are distributed to charitable organisations which support the cause, he said.
Sunday’s marathon
The ‘Run a Mile, Share a Meal’ event is open to anyone interested in charity work and, of course, running a mini-marathon. All members of Soles of Kochi, besides the employees of firms in Infopark, will participare in the event. The event starts at the district jail passes through Infopark and ends again at the jail. There are 5 km and 10 km category races; the latter is open only to participants over 10 years. Runners finishing the race will be awarded a medal and certificate. Ernakulam District Collector K Mohammad Y Safirulla is expected to attend the upcoming event.