If this event gets any bigger, participants may have to assemble at Drake Stadium instead of the Parish House at Newnan First United Methodist Church.
On Saturday, a mob of well over 700 gathered for the 10th annual Run for Angels 5K/10K road race and Chicken-Q benefitting Angel's House children's shelter.
Runners and walkers ranged from tots in strollers to joggers with Medicare cards, but all had a great time and event organizers were thrilled to see the largest group of people sporting Spandex since the 2008 Spice Girls reunion tour.
"We are so excited," said Angel's House board member LouAnne Connell. "Last year we had 600 runners and thought that was really good. This year we ran out of numbers for all the runners who registered and we'll have to order more T-shirts to make sure everybody who showed up gets one. We are just thrilled with how things turned out."
ValuTeachers and the Kiwanis Club of Newnan were title sponsors for this year's event, but they weren't the only sponsors. Angel's House board member Angie Tarkenton said 68 local businesses and individuals served as sponsors for the 2012 event.
That kind of support gets noticed. Tarkenton said that Gary Jenkins of Pacesetters, the group which helps organize the race, told her his company works with many similar events but none as heavily-supported as the Run for Angels.
"He said he had never seen so many sponsors for a race like this," Tarkenton said. "He was really impressed."
For the first time, this year's race featured chip timing, a system that collects race time data from a small chip placed on a runner's bib or shoelace. Chip timing speeds up the awards presentation ceremony by processing race results electronically.
The logo for this year's event is new, too. It now features the historic 1904 Courthouse, and was drawn by local artist Chandler Brandenburg.
Angel's House got its start in 2000. At the time, many foster children who were removed from their home situations were forced to stay overnight at Coweta's Department of Family and Children's Services office until housing placement could be arranged.
The community responded by forming the Newnan-Coweta Children's Shelter Board to raise money for a permanent children's shelter.
Newnan native and country music superstar Alan Jackson held a special concert and raffle for the charity that raised hundreds of thousands of dollars. The board gave Jackson and his wife, Denise, the honor of naming the shelter. They chose Angel's House because it was the couple's wish that the children be surrounded by "heavenly and earthly angels."
Angel's House opened its doors to children on June 21, 2004. To date, Angel's House has provided for 155 children, 85 percent of them from Coweta County. The organization's annual budget exceeds $250,000. Angel's House is sustained by state stipends, donations, and its sole fundraising effort -- the annual Run for Angels and Chicken-Q.
Every dime raised by the event goes to the Angel's House effort, according to Tarkenton.
Donations may be made throughout the year to Newnan-Coweta Angel's House at P.O. Box 657, Newnan, GA 30264.
(To view or purchase photos from this event, please visit http://photos.times-herald.com/mycapture and click on Events for the Run for Angels gallery.)
