More than 250 runners and walkers turned out for the Food Bank for Central & Northeast Missouri’s 9th Annual Hope for Heroes 5K, and together they raised $65,000 — cash and in-kind combined — for the Food Bank’s veterans programs, according to the Food Bank’s own recap.
The money goes straight to the VIP Veteran Pack Program, which sends out 560 boxes of food and personal-care items every month across 13 counties in the Food Bank’s service area — Boone and its neighbors among them. Columbia Insurance, one of the event’s backers, put it simply: the company is “especially” focused on those who have “selflessly served in uniform,” a strategist for the company said in the Food Bank’s writeup.
The Food Bank says it’s already planning to grow the event for 2027 — adding a 10K alongside the 5K and moving it to a new location earlier in the year. Worth watching for if you’re looking for a local race with a direct, countable local impact.