by guest contributor Kandie Stroud
Photo credit: Courtesy of Kandie Stroud
What made this year’s Stroud Foundation 5k a smash success was not only because it was held on the most beautiful morning of the spring–weather which turned out hundreds of racers to run along the C&O canal to raise funds for kids with learning differences–but also because even toddlers and young un’s ran it with their parents.
The Perraut family from Bethesda ran it with their daughters, Mattie, age 2, in her stroller and Regan, age 4, who finished alongside her dad. “Great cause and we have so much fun!” said Ryan Perrault. Ryan O’Keefe, age 8 ran the entire race with his father Peter. Finley Stroud, age four, did the 5k from Fletcher’s Boat House to Georgetown and back by bike, exclaiming, “I need to finish so I can get a medal.”
Dr. Terrence Keaney brought his family to the race “to honor Dr. Stroud and his legacy and all he’s done for kids. I think he was a great man, so we do it to honor him and children who need help.”
The Strouds
The Stroud Foundation was established in 2008 to honor the memory of Washington DC’s beloved pediatrician Dr. Frank Stroud. He cared for tens of thousands of children but he was particularly devoted to children with learning differences and their families. He consulted with Psychologists and Psychiatrists who specialized in Learning Disabilities, including ADD and ADHD; he consulted with schools, their nurses and teachers on behalf of the children he treated; and he advocated for children who needed someone that believed in them. He often said, “No child wants to fail.”
Noted child and adult psychiatrist, Dr. Joe Novello, addressed the crowd prior to the starting gun. “Frank Stroud was a visionary. He taught me and so many others about learning disabilities and how they should be found early and how youngsters should be given different types of educational opportunities…they add so much to our world. Thanks to Doctors like Frank, there are so many programs available now to enhance those educational opportunity. Go for it!”
