Mighty Medic Meltdown Run Published April 8, 2014 By Senior Airman Kristoffer Kaubisch Minot Air Force Base Public Affairs MINOT AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. -- The 5th Medical Group is slated to host the Mighty Medic Meltdown 5k/10k run on April 25th at the 5 MDG parking lot. The month of April has been designated as Child Abuse Prevention and Sexual Assault Awareness Month in the United States and is being observed at Minot Air Force Base through a variety of events such as the Mighty Medic Meltdown run. "The 5th Medical Group believes fitness and resiliency go hand in hand," said Maj. Jaime Harvey, 5th Medical Group Health Promotions Flight Commander. "We wanted to create an event to celebrate the beginning of spring, the snow finally melting and get people outside." Those participating in this event are asked to wear teal or royal blue in support of these causes, said Harvey. "The main goal of the race is to highlight and support Sexual Assault Awareness and Child Abuse Prevention Month and simply promote health and wellness on Minot AFB," said Chief Master Sgt. Thomas Stiles, 5th Medical Group superintendant. "We thought that this race would be a great platform to serve these initiatives". The race will begin and end in the 5 MDG parking lot, so the course will be different than the normal 5k route on base, said Stiles. "The entire course will be lined with educational and inspiration messages to spotlight the issues of Sexual Assault and Child Abuse," said Harvey. "We've also gotten our community partners involved." The Health and Wellness Center will be leading the race with group stretches and warm-ups while Balfour Beatty Communities will be supporting the race by providing healthy snacks for finishers as well as prizes for the top 3 male and female finishers in both the 5k and 10k events, said Harvey. The Sexual Assault Response Coordinators and Victim Advocates will also be providing SAAM gear to all the runners. "For the first time, there will be pacers on the route. We want to help others reach their running and fitness goals," said Stiles. "We will have pacers in each event for a eight, nine and 10-minute-mile pace. Just look for the highly decorated runners and follow them to hit your goal!" The 5th MDG will be closing at 3:30 p.m. To ensure runner safety, the parking lot will be closed to cars promptly at 3:45 p.m., so arrive early, said Harvey. Alternate parking will be across Missile Avenue in Base Housing. "We hope that this run will take place in April every year to give people at MAFB a training race to help prepare for the upcoming race season as well as to refocus people on their fitness goals for the Spring and Summer," stated Harvey. "Directly following the run, the Family Advocacy Program staff will be participating in "The Kids Block Party" from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Youth Center, to help promote healthy families," said Anne Owen, Family Advocacy Program Advocate.