Dash to benefit Drew Michael Taylor foundation

November 10, 2006|by KATE S. ALEXANDER

GREENCASTLE, Pa. - "Honestly, I wish we didn't have to do any of this," Randy Taylor said.

Since June 13, the Greencastle-Antrim Senior High School teacher has accepted, attended, planned and watched as the community offered what they could to his family.

"I felt we had to do something," said Jen Everetts, a colleague of Taylor's.

While Taylor considers his family blessed by the support of others, at the end of the day, he says "we still don't have our son."

Drew Michael Taylor, the 3-year-old son of Randy and Marcie Taylor, was killed this summer in a car accident while the family was vacationing in North Carolina. To honor the memory of their son, Taylor and his wife began the Drew Michael Taylor Foundation. Like most foundations, the Drew Michael Taylor Foundation is funded by donations and events.

"We really were looking for a reason to make some sense of this loss," Taylor said in a written statement.

The idea for the foundation was formed in the hours after young Drew died, and while the IRS has yet to finalize its nonprofit status, Taylor says the foundation has raised nearly $65,000.

In the past five months, many fundraising events have been hosted to benefit the Drew Michael Taylor Foundation and more are planned.

On Saturday, Greencastle-Antrim Senior High School will host the Dash For Drew, a 2-mile race and fun run/walk to benefit the foundation.

The Dash For Drew is the second of three fundraising events scheduled for this fall.The first was a concert last month in Lancaster. Pa.

Taylor said he initially was against Everett's idea of hosting a race.

"I initially said no, it was too much work," he said. "But my wife said, 'If they want to do this, let them.'"

Everetts said all of the money raised Saturday will benefit the Drew Michael Taylor foundation, and with nearly 450 participants registered as of Wednesday, she anticipates it will be a success.

The Drew Michael Taylor Foundation supports educational and recreational programs that enhance the childhood development by awarding local children scholarships and awards. For more information, visit www.drewmichaeltaylor.org.

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