Martinsville Half-Marathon Receives Grant

The Martinsville-Henry County EDC's Tourism & Film Division and the Martinsville-Henry County Family YMCA are pleased to announce the launch of new marketing tools promoting the 2nd annual Martinsville Half-Marathon & 5K.

The YMCA applied for a Tourism Marketing Grant from the EDC to acquire matching funds for the development and printing of an updated logo, t-shirts, posters, save-the-date cards and rack cards. The grant program funds up to 50% of a marketing project, not to exceed $1,000. Collateral materials and promotional items for this project were designed locally by Chatmoss Web Systems and also printed locally by Sanwell Printing.

The 2011 Martinsville Half-Marathon & 5K attracted more than 500 runners from a total of seven states across the US. With the addition of enhanced marketing materials to promote the race the YMCA's goal is to have 800 race participants this year.

According to Brad Kinkema, Executive Director of the Martinsville-Henry County Family YMCA, "We were thrilled with the success of the race for our first year. We are planning some awesome additions to make the race even better for 2012. One incredible addition is hosting a guest speaker the Friday before the race. The Speaker, Hector Pickard, lost both arms in an electrical accident. Despite his loss of limbs he still competes in triathlons and running races. We are glad to have the support of the EDC's Tourism Division to help leverage our marketing funds so that we can spread the word about this event far and wide."

According to Jennifer Doss, Director of Tourism for Martinsville-Henry County, "Research shows that half-marathons nationwide are on the rise, by 24% since 2009, and are considered an industry trend for the running community. We are pleased to partner with the YMCA and Half-Marathon Committee to promote this high quality event to out-of-area runners who may choose to add Martinsville-Henry County to their running regimen."

The Martinsville Half-Marathon & 5K races will be held on March 24, 2012. New for 2012, the course is certified and a Corporate Challenge program has been added. The event raises money for the Invest in Youth Fund for the Y, which allows the Y to offer scholarships to individuals and families that cannot afford the typical fee for programs and services. Last year the Y gave out over $100,000 in scholarships. Additional information about this and other events is available online at www.VisitMartinsville.com and at the MHC Visitor Center at 54 West Church Street in Martinsville.

The mission of the Martinsville-Henry County Economic Development Corporation is to create new job opportunities and expand the tax base for the area. The organization strives to support and develop local industry, as well as market Martinsville-Henry County globally as an exceptional place to live, work and play.

The EDC is a public-private partnership between the City of Martinsville, Henry County, the Martinsville-Henry County Chamber of Commerce, the Martinsville-Henry County Chamber's Partnership for Economic Growth (C-PEG) and the Harvest Foundation of the Piedmont.