Over 350 runners participated in the 16th annual Mara Fox Fun Run Saturday, sponsored by Lyons Hall, in honor of a student killed by a drunk driver in 1993, event co-commissioner Jeana Caminiti and Lyons Hall vice president Katie Sample said.
"It was a perfect day for running. We were very excited about the turn out and success of the event," Sample said.
The event honors Mara Fox, who was a freshman in Lyons Hall at the time of her death. Fox was from northern Virginia and intended to be a Psychology and Spanish double major, with an interest in studying abroad.
The funds raised from the run go directly to a scholarship that multiple people can receive to study in Toledo, Spain. Applicants are required to write an essay about how they are representative of Fox's qualities and about what good they hope to do while studying in Spain, Caminiti and Sample said.
This year, the commissioners contacted Notre Dame alumni inviting them to the run. If they couldn't attend the run, they were encouraged to purchase T-shirts.
"With the donation from alumni and the day of the race registration we raised over $5,000 that goes directly to the scholarship fund," Caminiti said.
The race is five kilometers long and started in front of Rockne Memorial Hall. The route went around the lakes, through campus and ended in front of South Dining Hall. There was also a 1-mile fun walk around Saint Mary's Lake participants could choose instead, Caminiti and Sample said.
Luna Bar sponsored the race and participants had six different kinds of Luna Bars and two types of Luna cookies to choose from. Participants also received a long sleeve purple shirt and a Luna water bottle. There were also prizes for the top runners, including donations from the Hammes Bookstore and gift cards to restaurants, Caminiti and Sample said.
The male winners were Eric Bens and Ian Graham, and the female winner was Laura Lindsley. The top finisher from Lyons was Kat Rodriguez, Caminiti and Sample said.
The week leading up to the race was Mara Fox Week in Lyons, which focuses on alcohol awareness. Lyons had scrapbooks out for people to learn about Mara's life, showed part of a video of the news coverage of the trial of the man who killed Fox, took a trip to the Grotto to light a candle and say a prayer for Fox, had a drunk-driving simulator and their brother dorm, St. Edward's Hall, had a question and answer session with University President Fr. John Jenkins, Caminiti and Sample said.
Every year, Fox's family comes to South Bend for the run, and this year 25 family members attended.
