The Mississippi State University Student Association will kick off the 2011 Homecoming Week with the first “Nick Bell 3.6 Mile Walk/Run” on the Starkville campus tonight at 6 p.m.
The event, which will benefit the Nick Bell Mentoring Memorial Foundation, is open to all members of the Bulldog family interested in supporting the cause.
The race will begin in the Junction and finish at Davis Wade Stadium, and volunteers will ring cowbells to indicate turns.
Rhett Hobart, SA president, said over 300 participants have already registered, and all pre-registrants will get their T-shirts once they check in on the day of the race.
Race-day registration will occur from 4:45 to 5:30 p.m., and the entry fee will increase to $20. Those who register on the day of the race will receive their T-shirts at a later date.
Anyone who is unable to participate but would like to support the cause by purchasing a T-shirt is welcome to place an order during pre-race registration. The cost is $12, and the shirts will be available for pick up next week.
This year, Linda Bell established the Nick Bell Mentoring Memorial Foundation in an effort to fulfill her son’s life-long promise to serve his community and mentor others.
Hobart said SA Health Education and Students with Disabilities Committee and Student Activities Committee developed the idea for a 5K race fundraiser to support a meaningful cause.
“Nick was a great guy who truly embodied the spirit of Mississippi State, and we wanted to find a way to honor him by creating an event to benefit his newly-established Mentoring Foundation,” Hobart said.
Thad Oswalt, assistant director of SA Health Education and Students with Disabilities Committee, designed a 3.6 mile course to pay tribute to Bell’s jersey number, 36.
Emily Nations, SA chief programming officer who has helped coordinate the Nick Bell 3.6 Mile Walk/Run into the Homecoming schedule, said she hopes this year’s fundraiser will develop into an annual tradition.
Bell, a 20-year-old native of Bessemer, Ala., was a starting defensive lineman for the MSU football team and member of Omega Psi Phi fraternity. A junior pursuing a degree in kinesiology, he passed away from a rare form of skin cancer on Nov. 2, 2010.
Linda Bell said she is very appreciative of the thoughtful effort SA is making on behalf of her son.
“I can still see him walking out the door with a big smile on his face. I would like to see lots of people show how much they cared about him because he loved football and he loved that place (Mississippi State),” Bell said.
Megan Mullen, wife of MSU head coach Dan Mullen, said she recognizes the importance of this event in ensuring Nick Bell will always be remembered.
“I am so glad that people are supporting the foundation and not forgetting him and all the wonderful things he wanted to do in his life,” she said.
For more information about the event, contact Rhett Hobart at 325-3917 or [email protected].