Georgia family real winner at 9th annual Race for RET
Hilton Head Island High School's Nahuel Coronal and Bluffton's Madison Llewellen were the top male and female finishers, respectively, at Saturday's Run for RET 5K race at Hilton Head Prep.
But they weren't the real winners of the ninth annual event. That title goes to William Thomas and his family.
Former Hilton Head Prep star athlete Ret Thomas died in 2000 at age 15 after a year-long battle with Ewing's Sarcoma. The event, started by his parents and named in his honor, benefits the RET Pediatric Cancer Foundation.
The foundation hosts fundraising events to assist children afflicted with pediatric cancers by improving the lives of those children in any way possible.
"What it really comes down to," Suzanne Thomas, Ret Thomas' mother and founder of the race, said, "is when a kid gets cancer, they're in the hospital. That kid's mother can't be at work, she needs to be with her child."
That's where the RET Foundation comes in, she said. The organization will pay bills, buy food, pay rent, make car payments -- anything that will make it easier for a mother or father to spend time with their sick child.
William Thomas, who just completed his final round of chemotherapy, is the latest in a long list the foundation has helped. He beat brain cancer, but now suffers from unrelated acute lymphatic leukemia.
Sharonda Thomas, a mother of five, including 16-year-old William and two younger siblings, traveled with her son from their Statesboro, Ga., home to see what the event was all about. She said she didn't expect it to be so big.
"It shows me there are still people in this world that are willing to do good things for others," Sharonda Thomas said. "It's also about love and understanding what we're going through."
William Thomas was a little overwhelmed but eager to return for next year's race.
"Mom said we could go to the beach," he said.
As for the race itself, it integrates a Hilton Head Prep home cross-country meet into the charity event. This year, the Bluffton High boys and girls teams swept.
Llewellen won the girls race in a time of 21:27, 2 seconds ahead of teammate Emma Dewey, while Coronal won the boys race in a time of 17:09, almost a full minute ahead of teammate Sam Gilman.
Llewellen ran the course for the first time and said the transition from sand to pinestraw makes it difficult and a slower track for her.
"But it's a fun course; I like it," she said. "It's a good race for a good cause."
Male Top 3 Finishers
1. Nahuel Coronal, Hilton Head Island High, 17:09
2. Sam Gilman, Hilton Head Island High, 18:03
3. Ryan Mousebrugger, unattached High, 18:05
Female Top 3 Finishes
1. Madison Llewellen, Bluffton High, 21:27
2. Emma Dewey, Bluffton High, 21:29
3. Alexis Voulgarapoulos, Hilton Head Prep, 21:38
This story was originally published September 5, 2015 at 5:56 PM with the headline "Georgia family real winner at 9th annual Race for RET."