Bloomingdale Senior High School’s ninth annual Running of the Bulls took place on January 17. A record number of 354 community members participated in the event, with hundreds more in attendance spectating and volunteering. Participants included runners and walkers from all over the area, current students, Bloomingdale High School alumni, Bloomingdale Principal Dr. Rodriguez, school board member Lynn Gray and Superintendent Van Ayres.
The Running of the Bulls includes a 5K and a half-mile distance. The event supports Bloomingdale’s Rajun’ Bull Band and provides two scholarships for Bloomingdale High School seniors, which will be presented at the Senior Awards Banquet in May.
Jordan Fraze, Bloomingdale High School director of bands, expressed his gratitude for the longtime support from the community for the event and band program.
“I am so grateful for all of the community members who participated in and supported our 5K. Seeing familiar faces return year after year to support the Bloomingdale Band truly makes our race special. We also saw many new faces this year, marking a record number of participants for the Running of the Bulls,” Fraze said.
Bloomingdale alum Christine Robbins, class of 1995, has run the 5K for eight years.
“I love the opportunity to return to campus as an alum and as a parent to support the music dept. It’s like a big reunion, only very early in the morning. You never know who will be there — a current friend, my former dance students, my kids’ friends or my high school classmates. This year was the first year I didn’t win for class of 1995, since Alana crossed the finish line ahead of me,” Robbins said.
The Running of the Bulls is made possible by local business sponsorships, and this year’s event had the largest support yet with 39 businesses donating. The 2026 title sponsors were Acropolis Greek Taverna Riverview, The Jeep Depot and Reed & Reed.
Malik Millet, Bloomingdale class of 2022, won the 5K with a time of 16:41. Natalie Donovan, a Bloomingdale High School senior, was the overall female winner with a time of 21:45.
To find out other ways to give to Bloomingdale’s Rajun’ Bull Band, please contact Fraze at jordan.fraze@hcps.net or visit www.bloomingdaleband.com.
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