Art by Ryen Goebel

The Bluebird Run for Brookie B. was established in 2015 to honor the memory of Brook Bowers and all the other loved ones our community has lost to suicide. Organized by the Tallahassee affiliate of NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness), our mission is to call out the need for suicide awareness and prevention as well as raise money for NAMI, so they can carry out this advocacy work.

We have extended the reach of our message every year as shown by consistent growth in participation leading to 555 registrants for Labor Day 2019. In response to the COVID pandemic we went virtual for 2020 and still found support from 346 registrants. A special thanks to all of you!

Bluebird returned to the J.R. Alford Greenway (2500 Pedrick Rd, Tallahassee, FL 32317) in 2021. With masked volunteers during a COVID variant spike, we welcomed 455 guests! In our first post-pandemic event last year, 489 runners and walkers participated. We hope to go over 500 again in 2023.

This is Brook’s home course. The trailhead venue is ideal for an event of this size. The 5K course is both beautiful and demanding. You will not set a personal record on this course, but you can take pride in conquering it. Your reward will be the welcome of hundreds of like-minded people at the finish line, along with fresh watermelon and the finest assortment of refreshments.

The Bluebird is a proud blend of athletic competition and social outreach – runners and walkers, young and old, vendors from many local mental health providers, and a special Memory Lane honoring our lost loved ones. JR Alford Greenway will come alive at dawn on Labor Day with party lights surrounding a 1600 square foot tent. Live music, fresh coffee, sno-cones, watermelon and much more – all free of charge. Bring your appetite for a grand assortment of refreshments.

And oh yeah, there will be races for runners and stellar scenery for walkers!

The 1M Fun Run takes off at 8:00 am and the 5K Trail Run/Walk starts at 8:30.