Let's Meet the Be Kind 5K!

In this week's edition of "Get to Know Us" we asked the Be Kind 5K team to tell us a little bit about their race and share some behind the scenes info about the 2025 race. A big thank you to the Be Kind 5K crew for their time and for organizing this amazing event!

Race Name

The Kin “Be Kind” 5k and 1 Mile Fun Run

Who does the race benefit?

Kin Wellness and Support Center, providing free services to the cancer community of Bucks County. Learn more about Kin here: https://www.welcometokin.org/

How many years racing is your race celebrating in 2025?

This is the 3rd year of our race which has evolved year over year to become one of the most anticipated events for the cancer community in Bucks County!

How did you come up with your race’s name?

Our name Kin is meant to signify family and friendship. We want our cancer patients to know they are not alone and they can lean on us as an extension of their family. We lead with Kindness and the fact that Kin is so close to Kind we have begun naming events we host with the Be Kind moniker.

What inspired you to have the race?

Kin is a non-profit that is 100% funded by donations. We need to host fundraisers in order to care for the 500+ Bucks County cancer patients, caregivers and oncology healthcare workers who rely on us.

Who are the superhumans who direct this race?

Our race is powered by 9 committee members who donate their time to make sure the race is a success!

What have proceeds from this race helped you do in years past?

The proceeds from previous races have gone to support the overhead expenses like rent, staff, and programs for our guests.

What are your race goals going forward?

We create an environment where all are welcome. The diehard runners, the joggers, the walkers, and the people who may have never participated in an event like this! We love to see when participants create teams of friends and families to participate as a way to encourage or honor someone close to them who is or has battled cancer The course is located in a beautiful setting and the spirit of the day is always very positive and uplifting!

Any funny or noteworthy highlights from previous races?

Last year we had over 25 people show up to support a local fella in the midst of his fight and it was heartwarming to see. People actually flew in just to be at the race for him and it was very inspiring. We also had two young boys who ended up beating their dad and were waiting for him at the finish line. It was a nice moment. There was also a woman who is a volunteer at Kin who trained and ran for the first time and came in first in her age group! The vibe of 600 people all coming together for a common cause has an amazing ripple effect!

Any changes we can expect for 2025?

This year we are altering the route slightly. Last year we started in the middle of Holicong Park and ran down Quarry Rd. to Upper Mountain. This year we are heading out of the park on the other side and running down Holicong Rd. to Upper Mountain Rd. It is a really awesome out and back with some nice rolling hills but nothing too intense.

We realized last year things were really spread out, so we have taken some time to reimagine the set up to create a more intimate experience and make things easier for the participants and our volunteer staff. Registration will be closer to the start/finish line and the DJ placement will be next to start/finish and vendor village.

We also wanted to make parking easier so people will have the ability to leave the park from 90% of our parking spots, as opposed to not being able to leave until the 5k is over.

Any advice for someone who has never run your race?

If you have never run our race we’d love for you to know:

1. You can run or walk both of our races. The 5k and/or the 1-mile fun run!
2. Show up in enough time to park, use the bathroom if necessary and get settled, there is nothing worse than rushing to an event like this.
3. You do not need to be an Olympian. We send the runners off first so our walkers can enjoy the course as well.
4. Stay after and have snacks, cheer people on at the awards and meet our vendors and sponsors! Awards are at 11 a.m.
5. If you run 2 or more races consider joining the series as a series runner!
6. Be kind and have fun!

ALSO:

We are so happy this year to have a local survivor and thriver, Chris Baccash as our official race ambassador. Chris is a Doylestown resident who is a member of the Bikeworks team and will launch our 1 Mile Fun Run, be the pace bike for the 5k and hand out awards to the winners! We are honored to have Chris affiliated with our race. He is a beacon of positivity and encapsulates the persona we are striving for at our Be Kind event!