English teacher Kate Fletcher is set to run the annual Lion Pride Run for the 8th year in a row. This year, Fletcher plans to take a more historic route; Jack Jouett’s path.
Fletcher started the Lion Pride Run in 2016 to raise money for scholarships. Since then, she has run to Richmond and Washington D.C. The route that Fletcher will take this year is the one that Jouett rode to warn Thomas Jefferson about the invading British forces. On March 25th – 26th, Fletcher will run 40 miles at night from Cuckoo, Louisa to Monticello, Charlottesville.
Photo credits to Meredith Williamson
(Meredith Williamson )
“Everyone knows that he was a famous local hero, so we thought it would be fun and interesting to do a reenactment of a historical event,” Fletcher said. “Jouett was male and rode on a horse and I’m a female wearing a tutu, so it’s fun to add a modern twist to something kids learn about in history books.”
Since the Lion Pride Run started, over $94,000 has been raised for scholarships. Many local businesses donate money for their own scholarship and smaller businesses can donate to the Lion Pride Run scholarship. Barton and Boyd has donated six years in a row and Asian Cafe has donated between $500 and $1000 each year.
“The scholarships are important for seniors who are graduating and need the extra financial support for a two or four year college, or recently we started giving scholarships to students going into trade school,” Fletcher said. “We give them to students who have had challenges and overcome them.”
The Leadership class plans and organizes the run and helps with the scholarships. They collaborated with Monticello for the run to end there and the Louisa, Fluvanna, and Albemarle sheriff’s office to keep Fletcher safe.
Photo credits to Andrew Woolfolk
(Andrew Woolfolk )
“There’s a bunch of students that go out into the community and interact with businesses,” Leadership teacher Meredith Williamson said. “There’s so much behind the scenes that people don’t see.”
Senior Hayden Pugh is one of the Leadership students working on the run. Pugh works on the social media team for promoting the run.
“It’s a really special event here in Louisa,” Pugh said. “It’s bigger than all of us.”
