9th annual Turkey Trot set for Thanksgiving morning

The 9th annual Turkey Trot is set this year for Thanksgiving morning, Thursday, November 26, 2015 at 9:00 am.

The 5km fun run/walk raises funds for the Ballard Food Bank with participants making their way over the course from Sunset Hill to Golden Gardens Park.

Registration for this family-friendly event is now open, the deadline being November 17th. Early registration is $25 for adults, $15 for children 10 and under. You may register day of for $30 for adults, and $25 for children 10 and under. All proceeds go to the Ballard Food Bank.

Last year, over 3,500 participants turned out for the trot, raising over $110,000 for the Ballard food Bank. This year’s organizers expect to close to 4,000 trotters to turn out next month.

Once again, Patrick and Kirby McDermott will turn out to lead the Trot dressed as turkey, or tofurkeys, for the vegetarians in the crowd.

“The work we do at the Ballard Food Bank is a community effort. The Turkey Trot is a great way for all of us to come together and run, walk, or trot for hunger. It’s also a fun event to kick off Thanksgiving with friends and family,” says Jen Muzia, Ballard Food Bank Executive Director.

The event was originally started by three local Ballardites Erin Fortier, Matt Ramme, and John O’Brien who traditionally ran with their families on Thanksgiving morning. “It was a way to spend time with family on the holidays and feel better about all the food we’d be eating for the rest of the day,” says Fortier.

Ten years ago, the trio ran a similar event in Portland and no such Thanksgiving-day event existed in Seattle.

The trio then went about planning the local event in 2007 by sending friends email invites, printing t-shirts and mapping out a scenic route in Ballard. Just 50 turned out the first year to participate and, “had a great time”, says Matt, “We saw a great potential to expand the event.” Each year the event has grown and expanded, donating more and more funds to the Ballard Food Bank.

“During Thanksgiving, people spend a lot of time thinking about food. We want to raise money for those in our community who are helping the hungry,” says Matt Ramme, one of the event’s organizers. “We chose the Ballard Food Bank because it is a local Ballard non-profit and people can connect the run with a nearby organization.”

2015’s Trot is being organized by Fortier, Ramme, O’Brien and staff from the Ballard Food Bank.

Registration is open now.