A 10-year-old Olmsted Falls student won the female division of the Olmsted Spirit 5K Race on Sunday, May 29^th – easily beating 20- to 40-year-old women in the prime of their running careers.

Layla Bail finished with a 5K time of 22:07 – good enough for first place in the female division and 16^th overall against all males and females entered in the race. She capped off her stunning win by having her raffle ticket pulled for a girl’s bike to close out the day’s festivities.

Coincidentally (or not), Layla’s mom is one of the cross country coaches at the Olmsted Falls Middle School.

The overall race winner against a field of 317 runners was Avon Lake High School alum and cross country standout, Chip Connolly, with a time of 16:52.

The event has become a much anticipated “Rite of Spring” as hundreds of Olmsted residents come out to support the race. 

As the Founding Sponsor of this community-oriented race since 1998, SpectraLight Photography is honored to be a part of an event that has awarded $262,000.00 in college scholarships to deserving Olmsted Falls graduating seniors.

These students have demonstrated selflessness by serving and/or giving back to their community throughout their young lives.

In 2022, race director Jeff Swislocki also blessed the Olmsted Community Center with a donation of $2000.00.

More information: Olmsted Spirit 5K Race.

See ALL the Olmsted Spirit 5K Race videos below. Click the video to start play. It will be immediately followed by videos from previous years. If you hover over any video – you'll see three small horizontal bars on the upper right corner. Click those bars to see all the videos in the playlist and scroll down to the one you wish to view and then click it. Pretty simple, yes?

Have you or a family member ever participated in an Olmsted Spirit 5K run, walk or a kids fun run? Please share your favorite memory of that day with a comment here.

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Maria’s Field of Hope was first planted by the Prayers from Maria Foundation in Avon, Ohio in 2013, to draw attention to the lack of funding for childhood cancer. The field was inspired by the memory and spirit of Maria McNamara, who died at age seven on July 14, 2007 from a glioma – the second highest cause of cancer deaths in young people. The field is a way to love and honor the courageous children who are battling cancer and those we have lost.

Maria’s parents, Ed and Megan, said, “We did everything humanly possible to save our daughter, but in the end, we could only helplessly stand by as she endured the unimaginable. Through it all, Maria showed tremendous character and dignity. Her strength, her courage and, most of all, her faith, left marks on our souls that have changed us forever. She never thought of herself. Instead, she chose to pray for all children suffering from cancer and their families. She prayed that the doctors would find a way to help them. She is our hero and her fight became our inspiration. Her prayers became our mission.”

This photo was taken at Maria's Field of Hope and is available for purchase for your home or office. (It will NOT have the logos seen here.) It was enhanced with Topaz Labs “Studio” software. If you make a purchase through this affiliate link (Topaz Labs “Studio” software) – you'll help support this blog at no cost to you – allowing me to continue sharing information like this for your education and enjoyment. Win/Win! Thanks. [Photo: Mark Madere | SpectraLight Photography]

Ed and Megan are dedicated to funding global research into the cause, prevention, treatments and cure for childhood brain tumors. The foundation has an impressive Medical Board that consists of some of the best doctors in the country for this disease.

Because childhood gliomas are grossly underfunded, the McNamara family is diligently working to make a difference by raising public awareness and bringing hope to children and their families who live with this disease. The Foundation has awarded hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants for desperately needed research.

A second field was planted in Sandusky, Ohio in 2019. The sunflowers draw thousands of visitors from across the country.

Discover more about this worthy cause at www.PrayersFromMaria.org and donate to support cancer research in Maria’s memory at www.PrayersFromMaria.org/donate.

Have you been to Maria's Field of Hope? Do you know a child who has cancer? How has that affected you? Please comment below.

Please subscribe to our YouTube channel and then click the bell icon to get instant notifications when we upload a new video: www.SpectraLight.com/YouTubeSubscribe

See more photos and videos highlighting what is great about CLEveland and Northeast Ohio on our HOTonCLE website: www.HOTonCLE.com

Please subscribe to our HOTonCLE YouTube channel and then click the bell icon to get instant notifications when we upload a new video: www.HOTonCLE.com/YouTubeSubscribe

See the gear and software we use to create our videos and photos: www.SpectraLight.com/Gear

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The nursing staff at Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital are hoping for an invasion of cute, cuddly monkeys – just in time for Christmas!

That’s because I'm trying to provide each child patient who is spending their Christmas at Rainbow a free monkey to brighten their stay. Unfortunately, I may not have enough monkeys to go around.

“Monkey Mayhem” – my initiative to raise enough money for a monkey for each of the 200+ plus Rainbow patients on Christmas day has reached the half-way point – BUT time is running out. I need to place an order with the supplier by Friday to have them in time for Christmas.

Anyone can donate to the cause at www.CLEoTheMonkey.com. (NOTE: This campaign was from 2011. The donation link has been removed.)

Marilyn McGrath, director of the Children’s Miracle Network at Rainbow, is pleased about this cause. “As a UH employee, Mark has come up with these adorable monkeys, which when attached to the child’s IV pole or bed will help take their mind off their stay.”

For more on this story, read the Cleveland.com article.

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The nursing staff at Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital will soon be bracing themselves for an invasion of cute, cuddly mocha monkeys – just in time for Christmas! That's because I've decided to provide each child patient who is spending their Christmas at Rainbow a free monkey to brighten their stay.

My first visit to Rainbow was in the early eighties when I visited a teenager who had Cystic Fibrosis (CF). Her name was Betsy Baker and she was the daughter of the minister who would preside over my wedding. Betsy was a dear friend of my wife and a cherished bridesmaid at our wedding. A few years later, Betsy succumbed to CF.

My other experience with Rainbow occurred when a friend of my oldest daughter – Dara Hosta – was taken there after collapsing in gym class from an unknown cause in ninth grade. Dara passed away six days later at Rainbow. Because of that experience, I became the Founding Sponsor of the Dara Hosta Olmsted Spirit 5K Race/Walk in 2000. The event has raised over $150,000.00 for college scholarships for Olmsted Falls graduates since its inception.

I now pass through the halls at Rainbow each day as I come to work as an Ophthalmic Photographer at University Hospitals. I witness ailing children arriving with their parents and concerned grandparents pacing the floors. It was an easy decision to make Christmas just a little more fun for the special children at Rainbow.

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Ahh – out of the mouths of babes!

Regina Brett – Cleveland Plain Dealer Reporter shares some life lessons from an almost two-year-old that will surely make you smile.

Hey, I'm just a middle-aged guy and I really enjoyed this column. So take a minute away from your daily grind and read what the little toddler had to say: http://bit.ly/ebMyZM

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Here's an inspiring excerpt I read from God Never Blinks: 50 Lessons for Life's Little Detours by Regina Brett.

Graduates: Go after your own grail with gusto

The parents are starting to panic.

As college seniors prepare to graduate, their loved ones call and write me for advice: My daughter, my son, is graduating from college and there are no jobs. They spent all that time and money to prepare for a career that might not exist. What can I say or do to give them hope?

Before you start making room in your basement for them to move in, give them the greatest graduation gift there is: believe in them.

Hope for the next generation isn't found in the want ads. You make your own hope.

Don't believe the rejection letters. Believe beyond the statistics.
Believe in spite of the facts. Believe in your place in this world even
when the world doesn't believe in you.

We've all heard the stories:

Elvis Presley once got an F in music and was told to keep his day job
driving trucks. Michael Jordan was cut from the high school basketball
team. “Gone with the Wind” was rejected 38 times before it was published.
J.K. Rowling lived on welfare before Harry Potter made her a billionaire.

Beethoven's music teacher said he was hopeless at composing. Winston
Churchill flunked the Royal Military entrance exam twice and finished last
in his class. Lucille Ball got sent home from acting school for being too
shy. Julia Roberts failed to get a part in the soap opera “All My
Children.”

Thomas Edison was fired twice for not being productive enough. Babe Ruth
held the record for most strike outs. Walt Disney was fired for his lack
of imagination. Van Gogh sold just one painting his whole life.

You have to believe in yourself even when no one else does. You have to
believe bigger than the disbelief around you. You have to believe in
miracles, in what you can't see.

That might mean you have to create the job you want. You might have to
design the life you want to live. Three years ago, I made a fake book
cover and wrote my name down as the author. It inspired me to buckle down
and write my first book. My real book is now on sale at bookstores near
you.

A year ago I taped the New York Times best seller list to my office door
and boldly put the title of my book on it. My book just made the real list
three weeks in a row.

My vision board has a photo of me chatting with Oprah. Okay, so I cut off
Sally Field's head (sorry, I really do like you, Sally) and put mine
there. Why not dream big?

Design the life you want to have. Name it, claim it and start living it.

Stop telling yourself, “I don't know what to do.” You know something.
Start with what you know.

Ask yourself, What do I know for sure? Start there.

I used to tell myself, “I'm scared” all the time, so I attracted more
fear. A big wad of it, like those giant rubber band balls. That was me.
Layer upon layer, that ball of fear grew. No more.

Snap out of it. Go make something possible.

A few weeks ago the seniors from Baldwin-Wallace sang their hearts out at
Nighttown in Cleveland Heights. They blew me away. They're all on their
way to Broadway. Talk about a dream out of reach. The odds are against
them.

So what.

Their joy was so contagious, my face hurt from smiling. One song set me on
fire to keep dreaming big:

“If you trust in your song, keep your eyes on the goal, then the prize you
won't fail, that's your grail. So be strong , keep right on, to the end of
your song. Do not fail. Find your grail.

“Life is really up to you. You must choose what to pursue. Set your mind
on what to find. And there's nothin” you can't do.”

Find your grail. It's out there.

Just believe.

So what advice do you have for college grads and job seekers? Please leave your comment – below.

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