James D. Hill Run to Read

***DUE TO UNFORSEEN CIRCUMSTANCES, THIS RACE WILL BE VIRTUAL ONLY FOR 2023***

Virtual Run How It Works: Run or walk your virtual 5K between August 4th - 6th and submit your results to jamesdhillruntoread@gmail.com. Proof of your results must be a screen shot of your run through a running app such as Garmin, Strava, MapMyRun, etc. 

There will be awards for the top overall male and female in the virtual race.

Live Results: Live results for the race will be at the following link James D. Hill Run to Read Live Results. Please note that these are live and will update as race submissions come in.

Proceeds Benefiting: the James D. Hill Memorial Fund, used to purchase new books at Scranton's Albright Memorial Library.

Reading Is Fundamental, our nation's largest children's literacy non-profit.

Mission Statement: Our mission is to grow Jim's legacy of compassion and understanding, connecting people of all colors, shapes and speeds (running and reading), through our shared love for exercise of body and mind.

Our Story: 

All those that knew Jim Hill well, knew his first and deepest love was for his family.  But they also likely got dragged to a race or had to hear about a book or article, since he was eager to share his love for running and reading. His favorite part of road races was the sense of community and camaraderie; he was more than happy to start at the back of the pack and take his time. It was more about connecting and meeting new people than setting or breaking records.  He participated in hundreds of races over the years, ranging from 5Ks to full marathons, even finishing the Steamtown Marathon in 2010 at age 67.

He loved libraries so much that we have pictures of him in front of countless libraries visited on trips all over the U.S. and a few in other countries.  After he passed, people made donations to the Albright Memorial Library in his memory and in turn, the library set up the James D. Hill Memorial Fund.  That generosity planted a seed for us to continue and grow Jim's legacy by organizing this race in his honor.

He would be flashing his bright smile to know that we are doing this, and especially for the benefit of children's literacy.  He always loved and connected with kids and in fact, was a big kid himself - the below photo was taken at the Anastasia Island Branch of the St. John's County Public Library.  It was his first time volunteering there and when they asked him to dress up for Halloween, he waddled right up!

Jim was the sweetest and most selfless man we'll ever know.  We lost him on August 2, 2016, 10 days after he suffered a heart attack during a 5K race in Scranton, PA.  Along the Lackawanna River Heritage Trail, you will find a tree we planted with a plaque in his memory.  

Please join us in celebrating Jim and his love for life, running and reading!

With sincere gratitude and to sign off as he would have...

At Your Service,

The Hill Family