THE INAUGURAL Coolum ECO Parkrun was held on September 13 at the Quanda Industrial ECO park, and despite the soggy condition,s the run attracted many keen runners happy to take part in the first of its kind run in the local region.

Parkrun is a free, community event where you can walk, jog, run, volunteer or spectate. These community runs are held over a 5k course and take place every Saturday morning. Parkrun is positive, welcoming and inclusive; there is no time limit, and no one finishes last. Everyone is welcome to come along.

The event is very popular with more than 2,000 locations in 23 countries and some 518 parkrun locations in Australia alone.

The Coolum parkrun was the culmination of many months of hard work and fundraising by project team Donella Taylor, Gerry Taylor, and Sarah-Jane Alley.  Through their commitment, the community now has a new healthy fitness outlet that also fosters positive community connections.

The inaugural Coolum ECO Parkrun attracted a total of 101 runners and walkers, and 16 volunteers were also on hand to ensure the smooth running of the event.

If you are interested in participating in the Coolum ECO Parkrun, it is conducted on Saturdays starting at 7 am, at the corner of Quanda Road and Research Street in Coolum – look for the parkrun flag.  For more details on all things parkrun, Google “parkrun near me”.

Coolum Lions and Coolum Quota provided seed funding to help get the event up and running, and attended the first event. Sunshine Coast Council Councillor Maria Suarez attended and participated in the Inaugural event as well.