The 5th Annual Super Cooper Heart Run was Saturday Nov 7th in Lafayette and we could not have asked for a better turn out. The weather was absolutely beautiful, the crowd was full of energy and the stage was set with Steve Riley & The Mamou Playboys. With well over 200 total participants and volunteers, the Fun Run and the 5K went off without a hitch. Thanks to the race route volunteers, all runners navigated the open road course safely and we experienced no issues along the route. Lafayette PD was on site to keep traffic in check while the runners pushed their way along the streets of Lafayette.

See photos from the race here and here.

Kevin Castille (Laf) took the 1st Place Overall Male award with an amazing time of *14:37, which is a *4:43 per mile pace (*That is not a typo!). In 2nd Place was Ryan O'Banion (Laf) with a time of 17:49. And rounding off the top 3 was Kent Thibodeaux (Houma) with a time of 18:08.

On the ladies side, Olivia Girouard (Kaplan) took the overall top spot with a great time of 21:17. In 2nd Place was Reesa Bazar (Church Point) with a time of 23:00. And the 3rd Overall Female was Ariel Pousson (Morse) with a time of 23:14.

The kids also had a blast running the Kids Fun Run. Chloe Hamilton finished 1st, Alexis Sabbaghian was 2nd, Hailey Prevost finished 3rd, Ashleigh Burgess finished 4th and Remy Fontenot rounded off the top 5 in 5th place.

Congratulations to the top 5K finishers, the top Fun Run finishers and to all the participants of this race. Especially to the first time finishers out there who until Saturday morning never knew that they could complete an entire 5K! That goes to show with determination and perseverance, anything is possible.

**Results Corrections:

• Andrea Rubenstein was accidentally omitted from the results listing. It should be noted that she finished with a time of 36:10 in the 50- 59 age group placing her 5th in her age group. Congratulations goes out to Andrea for such a great time on only her 2nd ever 5K and 1st ever running the entire distance!
• Jackson Russo (10 yrs) was accidentally listed in the Female category instead of the Male category. His time placed him 5th in the Male 14 & Under group. Great job to Jackson for a 28:11 finish time!
• Remy Fontenot (6 yrs) completed the 5K race using his mom Ashley Fontenot's race bib and therefore Ashley's info is listed. Remy completed the 5K with a time of 36:05, placing him 6th in the 14 & under age group. This is Remy's 3rd 5K ever beating his previous 5K time of 40:45 by 4 ½ minutes. Congrats Remy!

One last bit of congrats to all the Team Entries, 'Calorie Police' took home the winning trophy for having the most entries. An honorable mention goes out to the other teams: Baby Angel Cooper, Yo Breaux, HHRC, Moore Power, Team Horizon, Royal Runners & Team Hunter!

The proceeds from this race allows us to help children who were born with heart defects, just like Cooper Fontenot. Too often we take our own good health and the health of our children for granted. We sometimes forget that there are many children out there who struggle with common everyday activity because of their ailment. Through Camp Bon Coeur (CBC), we are sponsoring these children who have endured so much in their young lives. This race helps them to attend a summer camp at CBC where they can be with other children who have similar heart conditions. At CBC they do not stand out from the rest of their schoolmates or friends. Here they are all equally amazing and super special - they are with their true peers. Cooper Life Fund is proud to announce that the total proceeds from this race was $9,500.00. This equals 100% of proceeds...no overhead costs, no administrative costs. Just 100% of funds going to the children as a way for Ashley and I to give back for our good fortune with Cooper. Thank you, thank you, thank you, is all we can say. Without you the participant, the sponsor, or the volunteer, we could not have come close to these numbers. Thank you!