NORTHAMPTON — All planes at Northampton Airport will be grounded on Sunday as hundreds of runners plan to take off for a “Runway 5K” to raise money for a local foster child organization.

Runners will race along the airport’s tarmac to help raise money for the Treehouse Foundation, an Easthampton organization that provides a network of homes for foster children in the city. Andrea Bacon, who has owned the airport together with her husband Bob since 2004, serves on the organization’s development committee.

“We had always thought about doing a road race, but we wanted to have a really good hook, not just a sort of out and back on the road kind of way,” Bacon said. “We were all sitting around and we just came up with this idea that we would allow people to run down the runway.”

The foundation’s development committee got to work organizing the event, creating promotional lawn signs, planning craft tables for kids, and decorating the airport’s hangar. The airport also plans, weather permitting, to display several vintage planes during on Sunday to add to the flair of the 5K, such as a World War II-era Waco airplane.

“We have this amazing group of people on our development committee,” Bacon said. “I want to give a special shoutout to them, because they are a kick-butt group of women who are doing this.”

The race begins at 9 a.m., with runners and walkers traversing the length of the runway, before turning and looping back around to complete the race. More than 250 runners have signed up to participate in the now sold-out event.

Already, the event has raised more than $70,000 for Treehouse, with the organization hoping to surpass $80,000.

“We didn’t anticipate raising anything like that,” Bacon said. “People told us in the first year you’re lucky to raise 15 to 20,000. We are just really blown away by the support we’ve gotten in the community.”

Julie Kumble, the director of partnerships at the Treehouse Foundation, said the money would be used to support various program, such as tutoring and arts.

“These programs are for teens that come from areas all along the Connecticut River,” Kumble said. “Basically, it’s support for programs that keep kids safe and healthy.”

Although the event is sold out, people wishing to donate for the event may still do so by visiting the Treehouse Foundation’s website at www.https://www.treehousefoundation.net.

Alexander MacDougall can be reached at amacdougall@gazettenet.com.

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