SMA’s BEACH House 5K Run for Runaways Scheduled for Nov. 12th

Daytona Beach, FL – Stewart Marchman Act Behavioral Healthcare is pleased to host once again their BEACH House 5K Run for Runaways at the Ocean Deck in Daytona Beach. The race will be held at 10:00 am on Saturday, Nov. 12^th. The goals of the event include:

• Raising awareness for the needs of runaways, and for homeless and at-risk youth as part of Runaway Prevention Month.
• Raise funds for the Huger Adolescent Campus, which currently houses RAP (Residential Adolescent Program) and will house BEACH House upon completion of the major renovations currently underway.
• And, of course, to provide a fun and competitive 5K/Run.

“The funds raised from this event will go to the Dr. James E. Huger Adolescent Campus, named for the late Jimmy Huger, who was near and dear to SMA as a founding Board member and advocate for behavioral health services in our community,” said Jennifer Secor, Stewart-Marchman-Act Foundation’s Executive Director. “One of the major concerns related to runaways is that those youth are approached by human traffickers on average within 48 hours of being on the street, so we need to do all we can to keep them safe. The campus that bears Dr. Huger’s name will provide a haven for youth as they go through a very tough time in their lives,” she added.
The Ocean Deck, located at 127 South Ocean Ave in Daytona Beach, partners with SMA annually as host for this event. They added a new twist this year to assist in raising funds.  They will donate 10% of all sales the day of the run from the time they open that day through 2:00 pm, including food, drinks, and retail items from their souvenir store.  There will also be free valet parking.
There will be supervised kids’ activities during the event. The race is timed by Silver Sponsor, 5k Race Director.
To register for the race, go to http://www.smabehavioral.org/beach-house-5k-run-for-runaways/. For more information, or if someone is interested in sponsoring the race, contact Cyndi Wysong at 386-236-3290 or cwysong@smabehavioral.org.
According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, other statistics about runaway youth include:

• One in seven young people between the ages of 10 and 18 will run away
• Youths ages 12 to 17 are more at risk of homelessness than adults
• 46% of runaway and homeless youth reported being physically abused, 38%reported emotionally abused, and 17 % reported being forced into unwanted sexual activity by a family or household member

• 75% of homeless or runaway youth have dropped out or will drop out of school

BEACH House provides temporary shelter services to youth (runaway, ungovernable, or truant) in need, youth referred for individual and family counseling while in a shelter, CIN/FINS (Children in Need of Services/Families in Need of Services), and families with children ages 10-17 years who are threatening to run away, persistently disobedient, or truant.