Going to the dogs
Blue Ridge Yoga’s Fall Foliage 5K raised funds for Smoky Mountain Service Dogs
“It was a beautiful day to stroll through the foliage
with friends and so many dogs,” said Sierra Schrieber, Blue Ridge Yoga events coordinator. “We decided to award honorary first place to Duncan,” a SMSD retired service dog that participated in the walk.
Schrieber said SMSD is an organization that provides service dogs free of charge to veterans in the local community.
“The studio owner, Jessica Mishu, has actually decided to contribute an additional $150 so we can make a full $1,500 donation to this wonderful organization,” Schrieber said.
“Blue Ridge Yoga hosts a fundraiser for a local charity every month,” she said.
As a planner and coordinator of those events, “I was talking with my boyfriend’s mother, and she was telling
me how she had just completed her first 5K,” Schrieber said. “It was something she never thought she would be able to do, but she felt such a sense of pride and accomplishment as she walked across the finish line and received her medal.
“I thought about how there are so many members of
our studio who probably felt the same way,” she said. “Doing a 5K can be really intimidating, especially the older you get. But the sense of accomplishment you feel is so worth it.
“So I decided that the studio should offer a 5K but make it as accessible as possible,” Schrieber said. “We marketed it as just a walk with friends through the beautiful fall foliage. It wasn’t a race; there were no winners; it was just a day to go on a walk with friends for a great cause.”
In choosing SMSD, “I learned about this organization through our student, Lee Turner, who volunteers there,” she said. “When I was thinking of the 5K, I wanted to encourage members to bring their dogs on the walk. I thought it would be a special twist to encourage people to do the 5K to show off their pups.
“So I thought it made sense for the fundraiser to benefit dogs as well,” Schrieber said. “That’s when Smoky Mountain Service Dogs came into my mind.
“I then decided to hold the event the weekend before Veterans Day to really tie everything together.
“We were so excited to have Laurie Birt, the leader of the SMSD Community Events Team, attend with a service dog to thank everyone and tell us more about all of the wonderful good they do for veterans in our community,” Schrieber said. “The walk was led by our team member, Emily Morgan, and her wonderful blind dog, Gray.”
And the fundraiser was a success, Schrieber said.
“The event completely sold out with 55 participants, and we raised $1,350 from participation,” she said. “The studio is planning to kick in an additional $150 so we can donate a full $1,500.
“We are so thrilled with the turnout that we’re considering making the Fall Foliage 5K an annual event every November,” she said.
“While this event wasn’t timed and we considered everyone who participated a winner, we did decide to give Duncan Honorary First Place,” Schrieber said. “He was walked by Laura Porter, a trainer at Smoky Mountain Service Dogs.”
