Cove House Takes Reins of Gallop or Trot 5K

By BRITTANY FHOLER

Cove Leader-Press

The Cove House Emergency Homeless Shelter took over the reins in hosting this year’s annual Gallop or Trot 5K at Copperas Cove City Park.

The race is part of the Centex Race Series and has previously been hosted by the Copperas Cove Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber approached Cove House to see if they were interested in taking over as the host, to which Cove House responded in the affirmative.

Joelle Carter, who is with the marketing and fundraising department for Cove House, said that when the Chamber approached and asked if Cove House would take over the race and use it as a fundraiser, they had to say yes, and they made some changes.

“We kind of changed the design and the logo, and we switched the route to going to the left when it starts, and we have some new medals out here with our logo on it, and we've added pickle juice and granola bars to all of the stops,” Carter said. “But I'm very excited about this.”

The race course started at the Copperas Cove Civic Center parking lot, then turned left on West Avenue B, then left onto Courtney Lane, right onto Dekort Circle, left on North 23rd Street, left on Fairbanks, then right onto Courtney Lane, with a turn-around at a marked spot and then going right onto West Avenue B, right into City Park, winding around back of the park to the finish line at the Civic Center.

Krystal Marcotte finished the race and went back to the finish line to cheer on the runners and walkers finishing after.

Marcotte has been a Centex race participant before. She said she needed this release of running, especially after the start of the school year, as a teacher.

“I ran well, and I feel very good now, like it's a mood [booster],” Marcotte said. “You should have seen me earlier. I was falling asleep.”

Ancilia Murphy ran the 5K with her husband, Tyrone.  She said the last time she participated in the Gallop or Trot was back in 2019 and that she was a frequent race participant before getting COVID twice, which caused her to slow down and need to recover.

Murphy said the course was challenging, and with it starting backwards, she said it kind of messed with her mind, but she pushed through. She added that she thought that any event that helps anyone is a good cause.

“I would say more people need to come out and support the cause, and it'll actually motivate you,” Murphy said. “Just getting out of bed is step one. Being able to do this is step two, and just having a bunch of friendly people around you that encourage you along the course is great to have. It makes the rest of the day go well.”

Carter said 104 participants had registered for this year’s race, which had a $50 race fee. The money raised from the race will go back to the General Fund Operation account for the Cove House, Carter said.

“This will help us buy paper towels for the houses, food, laundry, detergent, groceries and body wash for all of our residents,” she added.

The Cove House can currently hold one family, four men and four women, but they are in the middle of having a six-plex constructed at their location on N. Main Street, which, when finished in November, will be able to increase their housing numbers to six families, eight men and eight women.

“We are a launch pad and not a crash pad, and we are not a general homeless shelter,” Carter said. “We're a program. We really are. It's a dedication. It's commitment. If you come in, you’ve got to want to turn your life around. You got to want to go somewhere, and we're there to help you do it. We're that foundation for you to build your life on and restart.”

The next fundraiser for the Cove House is a bass fishing tournament with a five fish weigh in on September 14 at Stillhouse Hollow Lake.