JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Dozens of lawyers, judges, bankers, and other community leaders will run around or bike to the Duval County Courthouse on Saturday and Sunday in the Freed to Run Challenge, which benefits the Jacksonville Area Legal Aid’s Shelter for Elders endowment in support of housing-related civil legal services for Northeast Florida seniors.
The event is led by Gunster shareholder Mike Freed, who spearheaded a six-year, $2.25 million, multi-marathon fundraising effort for JALA’s Northeast Florida Medical Legal Partnership. Freed, an attorney, was not a natural-born athlete when he launched “Freed to Run.”
“I’m not the fastest guy in the world,” Freed said with a chuckle. “I haven’t been a lifelong athlete, so I don’t have the bumps and bruises that a lot of basketball players and football players have.”
Challenges in previous years have benefitted pediatric patients experiencing medical battles. Freed said helping indigent seniors experiencing housing-related issues is especially important. Sometimes, this group of individuals is overlooked.
“My father passed last year as a senior citizen, my mother has dementia,” Freed said. “There’s a lot of seniors that are subjected to reverse mortgage issues, evictions, so all those types of things that my sister and I have been able to navigate because I have legal training and we’re not without means. I worry about the people that have to navigate that on their own or with children that don’t have means.”
The challenge includes a 24-hour run, a 12-hour run, a 5k run, and a bike ride from the St. Johns County Courthouse to the Duval County Courthouse. All of the events will culminate in a Finish Line Celebration on Sunday, Nov. 24, beginning at noon on the lawn of the Duval County Courthouse.
Event Details
Duval County Courthouse: 501 W. Adams St., Jacksonville
St. Johns County Courthouse: 4010 Lewis Speedway, St. Augustine
24-Hour Run Start: Saturday, Nov. 23, at noon
12-Hour Run Start: Saturday, Nov. 23, at noon
Bike Ride to Duval County Courthouse: Sunday, Nov. 24, at 8:30 a.m.
5k Run Start: Sunday, Nov. 24, at 11 a.m.
Finish Line Celebration: Sunday, Nov. 24, at noon
“People can come out and be part of doing something good, and see others doing something good, and cheer them on in that capacity. Get kids started at a young age, seeing how the community can come together,” Freed explained. “There’s so many things that are dividing us, and this is one of those things that nobody can be against.”
Jacksonville Area Legal Aid is a nonprofit law firm focused on delivering economic, social, and housing justice to low-income and at-risk individuals and families on the First Coast.
