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Memory of Marguerite Rotvold celebrated at Midway fun run

Runners got colourful for a cause last Saturday
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In order to avoid having standout colours on their clothes, the purple station volunteers opted to dress the part.

More than 50 bright white shirts crossed the threshold of James McMynn Park in Midway Saturday far cleaner than they would be upon their return, after runners in the inaugural Marguerite Rotvold Memorial Colour Run dashed five kilometres of an out-and-back route along the Kettle River through purple, green, yellow, blue and pink plumes of dust tossed at them by volunteers.

The run was organized as a fundraiser for a planned spray park in Midway — a project that Rotvold herself was a supporter of.

“Marguerite was very determined to see a spray park in our community,” organizers said when they officially announced that the name of the future water playground would be the Marguerite Rotvold Memorial Spray Park.

Before runners crossed the start line Saturday, they were given one final piece of running motivation.

“We hope you enjoy the run and that your shirts return as bright and colourful, as was Marguerite.”

Upon the participants’ return, it was clear that they could have benefitted from the spray park to wash the colourful dyes out of their eyebrows, beards, shorts and shoes.

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Along the running route, posters celebrating Marguerite Rotvold’s community service at the Midway border crossing, with the Kettle River Museum and other staples of the Boundary remind participants why they run.
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Until the next good rain, some roads in Midway may bear some leftover colour from Saturday’s colour run.
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Rather than dodging the plumes, many runners opted to collect as many splotches as possible on their clothing.
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To keep the colour on the outside and avoid the taste, runners hold their breath as they bound through plumes of the dyed cornstarch powder.
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One little runner learns that hiding on shoulders doesn’t mean you’re safe from the plumes of colour. (Jensen Edwards/Boundary Creek Times)