The only thing that could make running outside on a gorgeous, sunny fall day any better for the students of Cider Mill School would be if their collective efforts helped other people. That’s exactly what happened Thursday morning, Nov. 13, for the 39th Annual Jim Cook Turkey Trot. This annual half-mile running race is run by the Cider Mill PTA and coordinated by the school’s physical education department, and it benefits Wilton families in need through voluntary student donations to Wilton Social Services.
Cider Mill students participate by grade–running, jogging, walking, skipping, you-name-it–through the fields on the north side of the school and around the high school track, as parents cheer them on. Students were asked to make a voluntary minimal contribution of $2, and all funds collected are put toward the purchase of turkeys and gift cards for Wilton Social Services to distribute to families in need in December, and if possible, continuing throughout the year.
The race was started by retired Cider Mill physical education teacher, Jim Cook, who still shows up yearly to cheer on the students. He not only calls the race start of each grade (girls and boys run separately) with a, “Ready, set, go!” but he also stands at the end, high-fiving the kids and calling out their times as they cross the finish line.
“The original course was different–we’d go up and around by Comstock, behind the school and down to the field; it was about three-quarters of a mile,” Cook recalls.
He also says it’s very gratifying to see that the school holds the race. “It’s terrific, I love it. When we originally started, it was to find something that would bind the school together with the community, to give back to people in the community, and to have a connection. The effort is the real gift–to recognize that there are others less fortunate than they are was key, and do something about it,” Cook says.
Of special note was the presence of a handful of parents of today’s students who grew up in Wilton themselves and participated in the Turkey Trot when Cook was still a teacher. Cristin Wallace (who went by Cristin Murphy back then) reminisced with Cook after watching her own third- and fifth graders follow in her Wilton footsteps.
She said she loves how the tradition has continued. “I also married a Wiltonite. I have such a fun time introducing the kids to something from 25 years ago.”
Christine Costello is the parent who oversees the entire event for the PTA. She describes how one of the best parts of the whole effort is how the kids really make the connection with their active part in giving back and helping someone else in need. “I get quarters in envelopes, so you know it’s the kids looking in their own piggy banks, collecting their own money. Especially at this time of year it’s so important,” she says.