RSH holds annual Splash Dash

On Friday, Nov. 1, despite temperatures in the low 40’s, 65 participants gathered for the annual Rusk State Hospital Splash Dash. The Splash Dash is very similar to a color run. It is an obstacle course that winds through the grounds of the Rusk State Hospital in which participants have to complete various tasks while sponges filled with water and paint are tossed at them. All along the course you will see staff members, clients and observers of the mayhem and excitement that is a primary part of the event.

At one check point a runner may have to do 11 jumping jacks, while at another they have to carry an egg in spoon without dropping it. Of course, these sound easy enough, but when sponges are sailing your way, these simple tasks become much more challenging. During the race on Friday, one participant had to try 10 times to get her egg across the check-point as precisely aimed sponges kept knocking the egg off the spoon.

The annual event helps raise funds for the Volunteer Council for Rusk State Hospital,which is a non-profit, charitable and education corporation that provides contributions of in-kind goods, services, monetary support and volunteers for the use and benefit of the Rusk State Hospital and its clients.

The volunteer council works closely with the community relations department for RSH to help enhance the hospital’s care, treatment and recovery programs for clients served at the hospital.

The Volunteer Council’s goal is to serve the needs of the patients at RSH and the majority of the fundraising dollars are cycled right back into services for the patients.

This year, which marked the seventh annual Splash Dash, participants and supporting groups brought in approximately $1,800.

“I want to send out a huge thank you to Rusk High School, the UT Nursing program, Rebecca Owens from TCJ and our ever so committed RSH employees who turned around and went right back to work,” said D.D. Clark, Dir. Community Relations and Peer Support Services.