Runners couldn’t wait to take their marks for the annual Park View 5K on Saturday morning at the Roger Williams Park entrance across from Park View Middle School, mostly because it was the only way to warm up on a frigid November Saturday morning.

But the reason nearly 800 people, including Park View and Cranston East students, most of Park View’s staff, Mayor Allan Fung, runners from across the state, school officials, and armed force veterans wanted to be at the event was because of the cause they were supporting.

The proceeds from the race, which came from registration fees, were split evenly between Operation Stand Down Rhode Island (OSDRI) and Park View Middle School. Park View is still calculating the total funds raised during this year’s even, but event organizer John Macera said he expects the total to be slightly less than the $16,000 raised last year, which he attributes to the cold weather.

Operation Stand Down’s mission, according to their website, is “to help veterans secure stable housing and employments as well as other assistance according to individual needs including case management, basic human needs, referrals, and education and training services.”

Because of the work they do, people came out to support OSDRI, as well as Park View, during this Veterans Day event.

“I want to thank everyone for supporting a great organization like Operation Stand down,” Mayor Fung said in helping to kick off the race. “What they do for many of the veterans who are coming back with many issues from PTSD to societal issues they face in coming back into our community, the work they do is so critically important.”

Helping Mayor Fung set the chilly scene for the race were Park View Principal Michael Crudale and 7th grade students Rachel Cabral and Alexia Scrpis, who made sure to thank all the faculty, students, event organizers, Cranstonites, and of course the veterans who came out for the fifth annual event.

Before the 5K was the children’s one mile fun run, which started at 8:30 in the morning. In a neck and neck race until the end, Leo Woodman and Tori Brambely, both of Cranston, finished first and second, respectively.

Just before the 5K, members of the Team Hoyt Foundation, which runs all kinds of races in their wheelchairs, became the first participants to christen the starting line in this year’s 5K. Then, the horn sounded and the 567 bundled up runners were off to the races, following the road around Roger Williams Park in a dog-like pack.

The first to cross the finish line, just under 15 minutes later, was Warwick resident Bronson Venable, finishing over a minute quicker than the next fastest runner, according to the results on coolrunnings.com.

The top women finisher was Katie Greene, who came in 25th place with a time 20 minutes and 35 seconds.

Cranston East students finished near the top of the pack as well, with Brennan Haid finishing in the top ten with a time of 17 minutes and 48 seconds. He placed seventh overall, while Eden Fisher was top girl finisher from East with a time of 22 minutes and 17 seconds.

Park View students couldn’t be outshined, with eight grader Fernando Tavares completing the race in 19 minutes and 41 seconds, good for 17th overall. Fellow eighth grader Fiel Woods came in 34th, crossing the line at just under 22 minutes.

Awards were given out to the top male and female finishers in each of the 9 age groups, with a $100 grand prize to the top overall male and female runners, which in this year’s race were Venable and Greene.

Despite the cold, the fifth annual Park View Veterans Day 5k was a success, making for an active November outing on this year’s Veterans Day.