Ashley Furio 5K Run/Walk set Oct. 15 to benefit Children’s Beach House

The inaugural Ashley Furio 5K Run/Walk to benefit the Children’s Beach House in Lewes is set for Saturday, Oct. 15. Registration begins at 8 a.m., the kiddie walk begins at 8:55 a.m. and the 5K Run/Walk begins at 9 a.m. Day of race registration and post-race festivities will be hosted by Presenting Sponsor Crooked Hammock Brewery in Lewes.

David and Rose Furio, event chairs, have partnered with the Children’s Beach House to honor their daughter, Ashley Nicole Furio. Ashley had special needs while she was growing up that were not diagnosed until high school. Despite many obstacles, she graduated from high school and begin her long-awaited journey to helping others by becoming a pediatric nurse. Although the process would not be easy, she was determined to attain her goal. Sadly, this was not to be. Ashley passed away Oct. 15, 2014, at the age of 25.

To continue Ashley’s dream of helping children, the Furios founded the Ashley Nicole Furio Endowment Fund to support the Margaret H. Rollins Child Development Center at Children’s Beach House. The center provides education and wrap-around support services to at-risk preschool-age children with special needs.

“The Ashley Furio 5K Run/Walk is the first step in carrying on Ashley’s dreams in a way that will benefit special needs children for generations to come,” said Rich Garrett, executive director of CBH. “All of the funds raised from this event and others to follow will directly benefit at-risk preschoolers from Sussex County.”

Along with co-chairs Rose and David Furio, committee members include Rich Gallahan, owner, Crooked Hammock; Rich Garrett, executive director, Children’s Beach House; Midway Fitness; Pot-Nets Community; Mark Penuel, State Farm Insurance; Connie Miller and Linda Fischer, in honor of Howard Hocker; Barks and Bubbles; and East Coast Survey.

The race entry fee is $30 the day of the event. To register, go to www.races2run.com.

Those who don’t want to run but still join in the fun may sign up and do the Crooked Crawl. They will get amenities like all runners and start the race but head straight to the post-race party The party festivities include live music, kids’ activities and entertainment, prizes and more. 

Lydia Chichester du Pont founded the Children’s Beach House in 1936 to help children with special needs reach their highest potential as functioning members of their families and communities. Since that time, CBH has served thousands of children with polio, cerebral palsy, communicative disabilities and developmental delays. 

In September 2015 Children’s Beach House opened the Margaret H. Rollins Child Development Center to serve children ages 3 and 4. Although the center serves children of all abilities, it is designed to support those with communicative delays (speech, hearing, language). Goals include building a language-rich environment to promote social and academic skills for success in primary school grades.