By Shirley L Ng, AsAmNews Staff Writer
On the eve of the Mid-Autumn Festival, over 70 runners and walkers participated in the “Mid-Autumn Mile,” in Manhattan Saturday evening.
The run/walk mile secret fundraiser supported New Golden Fung Wong Bakery that has been feeding Chinatown with it’s scrumptious mooncakes since 1961 and is located at 41 Mott Street.
The Run For Chinatown Instagram account told the public earlier to keep the fundraiser a secret from the bakery and that it would receive 100% of the proceeds.
Leland Yu of Run For Chinatown and the two time 60 mile runner led the mile run. He told AsAmNews 70 runners participated in either running or walking the one mile distance that began at Cooper Triangle. Participants crossed the finish line with cheers from supporters, confetti and a celebratory lion dance.
Photo credit: Shirley L. Ng
Judy Lei, a first time runner with Run For Chinatown told AsAmNews, “The Mid-Autumn Mile reminded me of how resilient Chinatown is. The younger generation stepped up to organize purely out of passion. Their energy and vision was so infectious, it inspired the entire community to come out, run and to support.”
The owner of the bakery, Donald Lei was escorted from the bakery just feet away from the finish line and met with Yu at the end of the race as he told Lei of their fundraising efforts to support his business.
“New Golden Fung Bakery felt very touched and surprised by this gesture during these hard times, said a female manager at the bakery to AsAmNews through interpreter Judy Lei. “We hope we can continue to remain in Chinatown to plant roots and keep growing.”
All participants in the mile run received a goodie bag at the end of the race and a Chinese history lesson on the significance of the Mid-Autumn Festival.
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