The pastoral setting of Georgia Baptist Children’s Home in Palmetto was the perfect backdrop again this year for the 4th Annual Race for Riley fund-raiser to benefit The Joseph Sams School in Fayetteville.

Three thousand people across southwest metro Atlanta and beyond attended the April 26 event, inspired by Waynette Peek, Riley’s mother.

Waynette Peek is a tour de force when it comes to fund-raising, having single-handedly initiated the event four years ago to raise money for United Mitochondrial Foundation, the organization promoting awareness and research for the condition with which 6-year-old Riley was diagnosed.

Waynette and her husband Rodney, residents of Chattahoochee Hill Country, decided two years ago that the funds raised should go to The Joseph Sams School that Riley attends.

“Rodney and I started thinking about what benefits Riley the most. And it was such an easy answer. It was The Joseph Sams School,” Waynette said last year after deciding to route the funds raised to her daughter’s school. That decision still holds true today.

“It teaches Riley so much, living her everyday life, the things she needs to know, some basic life skills and some lifelong skills. This school is our safe haven, for Riley and for us. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that when I drop her off here that she’s taken care of and she’s loved. More than likely there’s not going to be a cure for Mitochondrial Disease in Riley’s lifetime, which is hard to accept. But it makes you think and prioritize differently. And you know that the things she is getting at school, day in and day out, are going to help her more than anything else that we can do for her.”

April 19 was a day filled with all kinds of activities for the family. Its signature events, though, are a 5K walk/run, a 1-mile run and the Tot Trot.

In all, nearly 850 people participated in those events, turning the large green expanse of Georgia Baptist Children’s Home into an athletic event unlike any other in southwest metro. It is one that draws huge crowds every year. And beyond the signature events were rides for the kids, live music, live and silent auctions and plenty of food.

Naming The Joseph Sams School as the recipient for the Race for Riley fund-raiser for the second year holds a special significance for the school and its mission. This is especially true considering the difficult nature of fund-raising involving special needs programs. That reality is all the more relevant for the Fayetteville school since nearly one-third of all its income comes from fund-raising.

“This is an absolutely wonderful event. We’re so happy with the turnout and the support,” said school Program Director Marie Sams. “We’re so dependent on fund-raising and we’re really grateful to Waynette and Rodney. This is huge for our organization.”

The Joseph Sams School serves intellectually, physically and developmentally challenged students from Fayette, Coweta, Fulton, Henry, Cobb, DeKalb, Clayton and Upson counties and from as far away as Albany.

The primary sponsors for the 2008 Race for Riley included Proctor & Gamble, Minerva Properties, Serenbe, A New Start Counseling Center and CH2M Hill.

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