Walkers raise funds for homeless

Many Johns Hopkins students participated in the Lancers Club's fourth annual Walk for the Homeless at Johns Hopkins University Sunday, Nov. 3.

The race began at 9:30 a.m. by Garland Field and went around campus, down 29th Street and back up Remington, returning to Garland field, ending at about 11:30 a.m.

The race was organized by The Lancers Club race committee Chair Stephanie Stamas as well as adult executive committee member, Richard Patterson.

Although the official numbers have not been calculated, "We had a wonderful turnout," Stamas said. More than 1300 people participated, each donating up to $20 depending on the registration fee. Participants 25 and older paid $20 while those younger paid $15. Runners included a large amount of students, both from Hopkins and local schools.

"We gave several assemblies at local schools before the event to get students excited for [the walk], which gave us a good turnout from the high schools," Stamas said.

Many Hopkins students participated in the event. The Men's and Women's Lacrosse teams have been walking together since the first annual race. Other groups at Hopkins included several sororities and fraternities, table tennis, houses such as Jennings and Wolman 4 East, as well as the Chinese Students' Association and Hopkins Christian Fellowship. Hopkins even produced t-shirts to distribute at the race.

In addition to students, there was also a large involvement from the U.S. Naval Academy. In their first year of participation, midshipmen helped with registration, handing out food and water and giving directions to those who happened to get lost.

The walk was founded in February 1999 by the club and its head Judge Robert Hammerman to raise money for women and children's homeless shelters. In its first two years of existence, it raised more than $250,000. This year, the club plans to donate all of its proceeds to several shelters, including Marin House, South Baltimore Homeless Shelter, Project Place and My Sisters Place.

The walk has been held on the first Sunday of November at the Homewood campus since its inception.

"It's a great location; it's near downtown Baltimore and [Garland field] is the perfect place for the ceremonies," said Stamas.

In addition to the walk, there was a small ceremony where they hosted a few speakers, including Mike Bordick, honorary chairperson, Dr. Nancy Grasnick, State Superintendent of Maryland Schools, as well as former mayor Kurt Schmoke. They spoke about helping the community and the homeless.

Stamas said, "It was extremely successful, we had a really good turnout, and we raised a lot of money for the homeless in Baltimore."

Freshman Oluwakemi Ajide said, "It was a great experience, everyone was energetic, excited and at one point they even started singing, OHe's Got the Whole World in his Hands.'"

"It was great to know that doing something as small as walking could let you make a contribution to the community. You felt great at the end, knowing that you helped the homeless," she continued. "I'm looking forward to next year's walk."

The Lancers Club is a community service club for middle school and high school students. Its purpose is to provide community service to the Baltimore area. There are about 100 member and their activities include tutoring, running soup kitchens, volunteering for Habitat for Humanity, cleaning up highways and visiting the elderly. However, the club is most recognized for their Walk for the Homeless.