Remembering Molly, ‘Run Today for Tomorrow’ 5K returns with local angle

The “Run Today For Tomorrow” 5K Walk/Run in Ottawa, the effort to promote suicide awareness in the memory of the late Molly Yacko, of Streator, will from now on be touching lives a little closer to home.

The third annual race – slated to begin at 9 a.m. Saturday, June 24, starting on Albin Stevens Drive, just west of the Veterans Memorial Bridge over the Illinois River – was created by Emily Hardee and is staged in the memory of Hardee’s best friend and cousin, Molly, who took her own life in 2018.

So far, the race has generated about $48,000, which has been donated to national suicide prevention organizations.

The idea behind the name is that tomorrow needs you here to see it. That’s the message we’re trying to share with everyone.”

—  Emily Hardee, Run Today for Tomorrow founder

But now, the proceeds will remain local in the form of a scholarship in Yacko’s name, awarded to someone engaged in the study of mental health-related fields, and a grant awarded to a mental health facility in the Illinois Valley area.

“Instead of sitting around being sad thinking of her, I wanted to find a way to help others in her name,” said Hardee, a graduate of Ottawa High School and now a physical education teacher at Marseilles Grade School. “The idea behind the name is that tomorrow needs you here to see it. That’s the message we’re trying to share with everyone.

“Doing this has allowed me to breathe again by helping other people. It never gets easier. It’s hard, but people need it and knowing it will benefit from this really helps. It’s a day to be around others that feel the same way you do, to share stories, to not feel alone … And the more people we see there helping us, sharing with us, the better.”

The first run – on June 29, 2019, was conducted exactly one year to the day of her passing – was expected to draw 75 to 100 participants with a goal of raising $5,000. Instead, there were 350 participants helping to raise nearly $17,000, which was donated to the American Society for Suicide Prevention.

In 2020, the race was conducted virtually and still raised a substantial amount, and the last two years it has collected $15,000 and $16,000, all going to the ASSP.

However, this year the proceeds won’t travel as far. Partnered with the Starved Rock Country Community Foundation, the effort will fund a scholarship – the Molly Lenora Yacko Memorial Scholarship – available to college students involved mental health related fields.

Also, the foundation will provide a grant for a mental health facility in the area, to help it provide services to those who cannot afford them or whose insurance does not cover or completely cover that area of treatment.

“There’s a hope that once [the scholarship recipients] complete their study, they might return to the area,” Hardee said, “but there are no promises of that required.

“It would be nice to raise more than we did the first year, but there’s really not a goal. I know it’s not going to help everybody, but this is gonna do something to help at least and the more we can raise, the more people it can help.”

Hardee said anyone unavailable or who cannot participate in the actual run can still be involved virtually, making a contribution through several access points. It will also accept sponsorships.

The cost to enter the race is $30 and includes a T-shirt, on which there is a QR code that can take the scanner to a variety of suicide prevention websites. Sign-ups will be taken right up to the beginning of the race, with T-shirts ordered for last-minute entries.

There will be race T-shirts available to spectators and there also will be plenty of mental health care providers on-hand to explain what they have to offer and what help they can provide.

To sign up or for more information, contact Hardee at 815-992-5245, visit the Run Today For Tomorrow Facebook page, email to runtodayfortomorrow@gmail.com or go to https://runsignup.com/Race/IL/Ottawa/RunTodayforTomorrow.

The event is in the memory of a 20-year-old young woman who lived her life in the Ottawa and Streator area, ran cross country for Streator High School and was attending Illinois Valley Community College at the time of her death.

“If you met Molly, you’d never forget her,” Hardee said, breaking into a smile. “There was never a dull moment with her. She was a light in my life and in everybody’s life. She was awesome.

“This is a good way to remember her and help others. She would have loved that.”