Cross Flatts Parkrun celebrated its second anniversary on Saturday (28 March 2015).
The plan had been for a number of gazebos to be erected to host the post run celebrations. Unfortunately, the exaggerated weather reports of a tornado heading towards Beeston meant the tents didn’t make it out of Ed Carlisle’s storage unit.
However, it takes a lot to dampen the enthusiasm of the South Leeds community and 106 brave souls still turned up to run the 5km course. The tents may not have made the event, but there was still a plethora of cakes to reward runners and volunteers at the end, courtesy of Mark Hodgkinson and Karen Ratcliffe.
Parkrun has become an integral part of South Leeds life over the last two years. As well as promoting a healthy lifestyle, it has brought the community closer together and forged many new friendships. As Parkrun regular Betty Barber commented on Facebook “I’ve made more friends in Beeston in the last 2 years than I have in the previous 30.”
The sense of community spirit that Parkrun has generated was symbolised by the litter pick that followed the run. The organisers felt it would be nice to give something back to the park which they now call home. So during the pre-run brief a request was made for a few volunteers to do an extra lap collecting litter. Despite the bad weather over 40 people were willing to get involved.
Adam Ogilvie and Hilary Benn MP were on hand to lead the way and special thanks goes to Sarah King and Kevin Broadbent from Leeds City Council for bringing along the bags and litter pickers.
However, the biggest thank you goes to the runners and volunteers who turn up every week to make this such a special event.
This post was written by Phil Hodgson using our Create an article for South Leeds Life page.