By Don Bradley
When Waldo bar owner Patrick Sanders started an annual benefit run to honor his brother, he knew the one person who would object to the whole thing.
His brother.
The 14th annual Craig “Satch” Sanders Memorial .1k Run is set for Sunday, August 13. The course: one lap around the back parking lot of Patrick’s Bar & No Grill at 8251 Wornall Road.
“He’d hate it,” Sanders said smiling in his bar Thursday. “First off, he’d hate it because it’s about him. But then he’d also hate that it’s a .1k race. That’s 328 feet, nobody does that. He’d say, ‘You can’t just make something up and do it!’ ”
He laughs. They were close, these two.
The first run, in 2010, drew about 30 runners and has grown every year since. Last year saw over 500 “runners” and Sanders expects maybe 600 on Sunday.
Over the years, the run has raised more than $300,000 for Kansas City Hospice, a nonprofit organization which provides care and comfort for people and families dealing with end-of-life issues. Last year’s run raised $62,000.
“Pat has combined fun with a good cause,” said David Wiley, president and CEO of Kansas City Hospice. “He is a good friend of our organization and we have come to know him and his family. These dollars help us in tremendous ways. I will be there Sunday.”
Craig Sanders suffered kidney failure in 2002. Patrick, his younger brother, gave him one of his.
“He got eight years out of it,” Patrick said.
Craig died in 2010. The family was forever grateful for the care KC Hospice provided him in those last days. It’s a close bunch. Waldo born and raised. Patick lives in the old family house and that’s where they gather. He said he’s hosted four graduation parties and doesn’t have kids.
“And no one under 50 in the family has ever had Christmas anywhere else,” he said.
They will all be at the race Sunday along with family friends and bar friends, and people like themselves, grateful for the kindness that came their way during the worst of times.
“I don’t know how they do it,” Patrick said of hospice workers. “Everybody’s terminal and they’re cheerful. They make you feel like it’s okay. I was so impressed by what they do and that’s why we do this run.”
It’s really more a celebration of life. Food and drink, music and fun. But if anybody wants to know the secret to growing a race, they should ask Patrick.
The key, he might say, is to have short enough distance that the ice doesn’t melt before the finish line, and stock the water station with donuts. The race bill says, “Extra points for not spilling your drink.”
Nobody can argue with having fun and raising money for a good charity, Patrick said.
“There’s bad things in the world and this makes me feel good about things. People are touched by the event and I’m touched by them.”
Patrick Sanders will serve as the official starter for the race to honor his brother. He will stand in front of the eager throng and raise his hand high.
“I just yell bang.”
Registration for the Craig “Satch” Sanders Memorial .1k is at Patrick’s Bar & No Grill, 8251 Wornall. Same day registration 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Sunday. Start time for the run is 2 p.m.
For more information about Kansas City Hospice, go to www.kchospice.org