Special to the Reporter

Families and friends are invited to participate in Valley Elementary’s second annual &uot;Trick-or-Treat Trot,&uot; a two-mile Family Fun Run on Saturday, Oct. 30 at 8 a.m. at the Pelham City Park.

Registration is $10 and participants who pre-register by Oct. 8 will be guaranteed a &uot;Trick-or-Treat Trot&uot; T-shirt.

According to Cindy Warner, supervisor of public relations and community education for Shelby County Schools,

in addition to the Fun Run, the event will feature games, music, door prizes, goodie bags for the kids and more.

All proceeds from the event will benefit the Arthritis Foundation’s programs for children with juvenile arthritis throughout Alabama.

For more information or to make a donation, call Valley Elementary School at 205-682-5550.

.&uot;The Fun Run not only promotes health and fitness for the family, but is also raises funds to help the 6,000 children in Alabama who have arthritis,&uot; said Ginger Aaron, a physical education instructor at Valley Elementary and Valley’s coordinator for Run for Arthritis Program.

&uot;Despite the fact that juvenile arthritis affects nearly 300,00 children in the U.S., it can be difficult to diagnose and treat,&uot;

she said. Juvenile arthritis is a general term for all types of arthritis occurring in children.

The symptoms include pain, stiffness and sometimes swelling in or around the joint.

Some common forms of juvenile arthritis include juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, childhood forms of lupus and ankylosing spondylitis.

The students at Valley are holding the &uot;Trick or Treat Trot&uot; as part of their participation in the Arthritis Foundation’s Run for Arthritis (RFA) Program, a week-long educational fund-raiser for middle and elementary school students.

During each day of the week of the RFA program, students learn something new about arthritis through educational and fun projects.

Valley students also collect donations for their participation in the &uot;Trick-or-Treat Trot&uot; at the end of the week.

As an added incentive, 20% percentage of the total money raised is returned to the physical education department for equipment upgrades or program.

&uot;Our school initially got involved with RFA last year because one of our students, Sydney Hood, has juvenile rheumatoid arthritis,&uot; Aaron said. &uot;RFA has helped the students better understand what children like Sydney have to go through everyday and how they can make a difference in improving lives of those with arthritis.&uot;

According to Warner,

If your school is interested in participating in Run For Arthritis, please call Blair Newman at 205-979-5700. The Arthritis Foundation is the only nationwide, nonprofit health organization helping people take greater control of arthritis by leading efforts to prevent, control and cure arthritis and related diseases-the nation’s number one cause of disability.

The Arthritis Foundation, Alabama Chapter, is located at 300 Vestavia Parkway, #3500, Birmingham, AL 35216