When it comes to initiatives in need of financial support, maintaining mountain trials isn’t normally at the top of the list. But it is for Matthew Thompson, who is giving back to something that has benefited him.
Thompson and a group of supporters staged a 100-mile run through the Sandia Mountains recently as part of a fundraiser to benefit Friends of the Sandia Mountains, a volunteer group that maintains the mountain’s trails.
“I really didn’t spend enough time while I was living here in Albuquerque giving back to the trails and doing trail maintenance or even volunteering at different organizations,” Thompson told KOB. “I’m about to leave for the summer and head to Washington, D.C., so before I go I wanted to find a way to give back more than just a small donation of my own.”
Thompson, an avid runner, came up with the idea for the Watermelon 100 Project as a way of supporting the mountains he has spent the last four years running while stationed at Kirtland Air Force Base. Thompson told KOB he has been reassigned but wanted to give back before leaving.
More than a dozen people joined Thompson during different segments of the run, including friends and family. He said there were “12 or 13 places” where food and water were distributed.
Thompson has raised more than $8,000 on a GoFundMe page tied to the event and plans to continue to raise awareness.
“It’s pretty much the most beautiful wilderness that’s touching a city in the entire United States and we’ve got an awesome gift here, so go out and use it, and enjoy it however you want to,” Thompson told KOB.