EDITORIAL

That sound you heard last Saturday -- if you live near Newport

Harbor High -- was the huffing and puffing of a good cause.

In this case, it was nearly 800 runners zipping through Newport

Heights and in the process raising $32,000 for the school.

In the past, the annual Harbor Heritage Run -- which has raised about

$25,000 each year recently -- has provided the money for the school to

build new swim lanes, buy wrestling mats, get a kiln for the art

department and purchase uniforms for the music department.

This year’s money will go toward sponsoring an assistant for the

school’s counselor, publishing the parent newsletter and supporting

various academic programs. Those improvements will be made largely thanks

to the event’s 11 sponsors, including its principal sponsor, Coldwell

Banker.

In terms of the school district’s multimillion dollar budget, and the

millions raised by Newport-Mesa foundations, $32,000 may not seem like

much. But the importance of this fund-raiser goes well beyond the dollars

and cents -- the money raised, and spent, for 13 years tells only part of

this good tale. The rest can be found in the numbers of people taking

part in the run, the prerace pasta night and all the other activities

surrounding the fund-raiser.

First off, there’s the students. All those who were up early and

racing in the 2K and 5K races provide the perfect counter to the typical

picture of children mentally strapped to the couch and glued to the

television. They’re being taught the right lesson -- and early -- about

health and fitness. We hope they continue to heed it.

But it was not just the runners who made the race a success. An

additional 700 people attended this year’s race, which also included a

water polo tournament and a free health and fitness fair. That’s an

impressive crowd for a cool Saturday morning. It’s also a lot of people

out in support of their school.

And there should always be more.