How much fun would a nun run be if a nun run did bring fun?
That tongue twister might have just been invented, but the fun, family-friendly fundraiser event has been around for nearly a decade in Denver. The annual Nun Run, a fundraiser for the Sisters of Life and their ministry, completed its ninth race and event earlier this month.
The record-setting event drew more than 500 people from around the metro area for races, yard games, Mass and community with each other and the sisters.
“It was a lot of fun,” shared Jared Fuelberth, a first-time racer. “It was amazing to see hundreds of people gather to support such a beautiful cause. There were many families and kids joyfully running around; truly a great way to spend a Sunday morning together. A friend invited me to it (and he won the half marathon!), but I’m glad I did the 5K. I think it’s a great way to help support our Sisters of Life who do such amazing work.”
“It was so blessed. It was so awesome,” said Sr. Marie Veritas, S.V., the local superior of the Sisters of Life. “You see the life of the Church at the Nun Run and you have everybody from parents with young kids to young adults to older couples, seminarians, and everybody in between. It really is sort of a little microcosm of the church, with the joy and excitement to be together.”
Sr. Mary Casey O’Connor, S.V., founded the race nine years ago to raise funds to support the Sisters of Life in their mission and ministry. After Sr. Mary Casey (who had served as the former youth minister at St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Parish in Littleton) left for the convent in New York, her friend Deb Smith took over organizing the Nun Run, with great success.
“Every year we have more people attend,” Smith told the Denver Catholic as she recounted the various changes she and her team have made to the event to facilitate greater community among attendees. With the addition of yard games and snacks, as well as Sunday Mass in the park, Smith shared that attendees are encouraged to stick around and spend time with the sisters, rather than rush off after the race.
“We just made a plea for additional donations, as we are about $2,500 short of our goal,” Smith shared, encouraging people to continue to donate to the sisters. “I am confident that we will reach the goal as people are very generous in supporting the sisters. The Nun Run is the single largest event that helps to fund the sisters in their life and mission in Denver.”
What exactly is that mission? Put simply, Sr. Veritas said, the Sisters of Life exist so “that every person knows that they are sacred, that they are important to the heart of God, that they’re unique and unrepeatable. They’re made in his image and irreplaceable. No one can replace you. And for every person to know they are deeply, deeply sacred, chosen by God.”
“In our day and age, there’s a lot of darkness and social pressures, and we can easily get overwhelmed and forget that truth,” Sr. Veritas continued.
“That’s why we exist. That’s why we live contemplative-active lives. That’s why our first mission is prayer primarily, and then all of our other missions flow from that,” she told the Denver Catholic as she recounted the various programs and ministries run by the Sisters of Life. From retreats to evangelization efforts to pregnancy centers and ministries to hope and healing retreats, the Sisters of Life offer a plethora of opportunities for others to encounter their beloved unrepeatability, their sacredness in the eyes of God.
“In a sense,” Sr. Veritas concluded, “all our missions are healing missions, missions of life, of the goodness of every human person.”
As they return to their daily work, Smith and the sisters look forward to the 10th Annual Nun Run next year, scheduled for September 15, 2024, as a continued opportunity to support the great mission of the Sisters. As they prepare for the next event, they have invited the community to consider volunteering to help in the organization of the 10th Annual Nun Run.
For more information on the Nun Run, visit www.nunrunsistersoflife.com/