Howl-O-Ween 2003
"Run With The Wolves"

This year's run was an outstanding success, both socially and financially. With Pat out of town on a family medical emergency, it was a bit more scattered and required extra effort from many of our volunteers. Without their quick response to this situation and their tireless dedication I am not sure how things would have turned out. Also without the continued support of our wonderful sponsors I am positive that it would have been much less successful financially.

The wolf's image used in this years logo for the run is Sky, which was a premonition of sorts, that predicted and absolutely beautiful day for the event. Although it was a little chilly at 6:00 am, when the volunteers began setting up, it warmed up to the upper 50's for the run. The 'sky' was clear and the sun was great when the race began at 9:45 am.

The ambassador animals that attended the event were Nanook, Xavier, Shaka, Samantha, Lakota, and Merlin. Although Nanook has pretty much been in retirement, he seemed to realize that his help was needed and graciously accommodated. With the recent loss of both of our primary ambassador animals, Mesa and Sara, two new additions to the ambassador ranks were called on to help -- Samantha (Sami) and Lakota. They were stars and also seemed to understand that their help was needed. They did great on their first outing and had a great time. Our wonderful standbys, Shaka and Xavier were as wonderful as ever and Merlin who is relatively new to the ambassador role surprised everyone with his instant bonding with and desire to be with Nanook. If anyone would have predicted that this relationship would have occurred, we would have thought them crazy as both males demonstrate alpha tendencies.

Over 250 people registered for the run and approximately another 100 spectators showed up to enjoy the festivities. This combined with over 40 volunteers that helped with the event made for a wonderful day. Awards were presented for placement within categories to:

Women 9 and under

1 Kiana Rief
2 Brynna Hasvold
3 Sarah Barge

Women 10 to 13

1 Paige Shilling
2 Shelby Mathis
3 Briana Cathcart

Women 14 to 17

1 Amber Vojensky
2 Jessica Roberts
3 Brianna Bowen

Women 18 to 51

1 Danielle Korb
2 Jennifer Lee
3 Laura Finley

Women 52 and over

1 Marilyn Stapleton
2 Suzy Rautenstraus
3 Ann Clarke