By Julie Slama | [email protected] 

Students screamed as they ran through the spray of a fire hose — manned by Unified Fire Department firefighters — during each lap of their school’s fun run. 

Copperview’s Run with the Cougars was a fundraiser for the school’s field trips, Community School Facilitator Jenna Landward said. 

“Many of our field trips are free or low cost, so the money they raise is usually for transportation,” she said. “The kids just love checking out the fire truck and getting blasted with the huge hose.” 

Third-grader Evelyn Jerman kept running, even past the spray that soaked the school’s field and some of her classmates as they were running laps. 

“I like running,” Evelyn said. “It’s fun and gives me something to do. I like to run track with Copperview Rec(reation Center), so this helps me get ready for it. I can get in some distance before I do some sprints and cool down by running with friends. Plus, I like going on field trips so we’re helping out with getting money for those.” 

Evelyn, who had a volunteer mark off her sixth lap before continuing to run, said that at recess, besides running, she likes to play games with the school’s structured recess program, Playworks. 

Playworks Coach Haley McIntosh said that the fun run is beneficial to students. 

 “It’s keeps them thinking how to keep their body healthy by running,” she said. “We want them to keep fit, exploring the mountains, the pool, the parks, not sitting in front of a TV.” 

Principal Christy Webb echoed the sentiment. 

“It’s a great way to get out and get moving and not have video games in their hands, but to encourage them to want to have fun being active,” she said. 

While many children were soaked, Americorp volunteer Jenna Taylor was ensuring they brought extra clothes to change into after running 20 minutes. 

“They all knew they’d be sprayed wet and were looking forward to it,” she said. “This is just a fun way to help the students become excited and want to be more active.” 

There were incentives for the students. Students who raised the most money as well as ran the most laps could select from prizes. Some incentives included pairs of Copperview sunglasses, T-shirts, and putting their names in a raffle for other prizes. Every student received an Otter Pop after the run. 

Copperview’s Run with the Cougars, which was held in June, was a fun way to end the school year, teacher Abigail Mueller said. 

“It’s a great way for them to celebrate by letting loose after working hard, taking tests,” she said. “And it’s a good way for them to be active both physically and in fundraising for their field trips starting this fall.”