OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — In an unexpected twist, runners and walkers participating in the 21st annual ‘Race for the Light’ 5K Fun Run will take a different course this year.
Event organizers announced Wednesday that the race, which normally takes place at Menominee Park in Oshkosh, will instead be held at the EAA grounds.
During the Pratt Trail reconstruction project in Menominee Park, officials unearthed a historically significant Native American village that dates from AD 900 to 1600 beneath the road bed.
As a result, the project has been delayed while crews work to ensure that the site’s archaeological and architectural history are preserved.
Various Oshkosh events have made location changes since the news broke, including the popular Celebration of Lights, as well as Brews in the Zoo and Zooloween Boo.
Hosted by the Oshkosh Area United Way (OAUW) annually as a fundraiser, this year’s Race for the Light on Dec. 2 will take runners through the Celebration of Lights holiday display, which has also been relocated to the EAA grounds.
“We are thankful to the staff at EAA for generously allowing us to use their grounds for our race this year,” said Beth Oswald, OAUW president and CEO, in a news release. “The Race for the Light has been a tradition for hundreds of families from Oshkosh and the surrounding area.”
Race for the Light check-in will begin at 3:30 p.m. in front of the EAA Youth Education Center, with the 5K Fun Run beginning at 4:30 p.m.
Registration costs $35, which organizers say includes “a race T-shirt, a set of jingly jingle bells, a dose of holiday spirit, and serious kudos for wearing an ugly holiday sweater or fun costume.”
For more details on this year’s event, visit the OAUW website, call (920) 235-8560 or email oauw@oshkoshunitedway.org.
