Hundreds Race for Youth Sports in Greenway Gridiron

Hundreds of runners spent Father's Day with the Vikings at Lake Nokomis in Minneapolis for the 6th Annual "Greenway Gridiron Gallop" 5K.

The race raises money for Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board youth athletic programming.

"Helmets for football and hockey and baseball and softball, they are quite costly. So to have some funding that we can lean on to make sure that all the kids are safely equipped is very important," said Mimi Kalb, Athletics Programs and Facilities Manager for the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board.

Vikings Linebacker Chad Greenway and his wife Jenni started the event five years ago. They could not attend this year because they were with Chad's father who is battling Leukemia.

Several other Vikings and former players came to the race in their absence.

"Chad's a close friend of mine. I was aware of the situation with his father so he asked me to step in. I was more than happy to do it and fortunately we were able to find some other Vikings that were able to come out, rally around our teammate and support a great event," said Vikings center John Sullivan.

"When there's events like they are having in their lives, and they can't make it unfortunately, that's what friends are for. You come out and support them even though they can't be here and you've got to bring as much awareness as possible," said former Vikings linebacker Ben Leber.

In the past five years, the race has raised 14 thousand dollars to help young people pay for sports fees and uniforms.