Area runners will be able to participate in two upcoming 5K races in Troy during the next couple of months.

The Troy Elementary School Parent Teacher Organization is holding its first TES 5K Race and Fun Run on Feb. 25.

“Our goal this year is to raise money, but also create a solid event for the school and community where people will look forward to running with us for years to come,” said Dr. Christina L. L. Martin, a member of the PTO and a professor of sports fitness management at Troy University.

Early registration for the TES 5K ends on Friday, Feb. 10, and is $20 for the 5K run and $10 for the 1-mile fun run. After that, it will be $25 and $10 to participate.

For folks just starting out as runners, 5K is equivalent to 3.1 miles.

The race will begin at 8:30 a.m. at Troy Parks and Recreation on Enzor Road, and race-day registration will take place at 7:30 a.m. The first 100 registered participants in each category will be guaranteed a T-shirt.

The top three overall runners in the 5K race will receive cash awards. Male and female age group awards will also be presented. All youth fun-runners will receive a participate award and the top males and females in different age divisions will be recognized.

Martin said registration forms are tricking in. They are available on the school’s website.

“I’d love to see 200 people out there,” Martin said. “Obviously the more the merrier because it is for the children and everything is going back to the school.”

Martin said all money raised would be available to teachers at TES for field trips, school supplies, or anything else that would benefit students.

On March 10, another race will kick off at the First Baptist Church in Troy. The Brittany Shepard Pugh Memorial 5K and Shep’s Sprint is also an inaugural event to benefit charities supported by the Junior Women’s League.

“We are expecting a really big turnout,” said Holly Pugh, whose sister-in-law and nephew were killed in a car accident on March 8, 2011. “We’re very pleased. I’m not going to say we are surprised because Brittany and Shep meant a lot to the community.”

The sprint event will be a 50-yard dash for children 3 and younger.

“Shep would have just turned 2 this past week and we wanted to do something with kids his age,” Pugh said.

Early registration for the 5K is $20, for the 1-mile walk/run is $15 and for Shep’s Sprint is $5. After Feb. 24, the price bumps up to $25 for the 5K race and $20 for the fun run. Only those who register are guaranteed T-shirts.

Participants can register through active.com, or pick up forms at Jones Medical Supply and Family Ties in Troy.

For parents who would like to run, but still bring their children. The church playground will be open with adult supervision.

Proceeds will benefit the Brittany Pugh Memorial Scholarship, the Miracle Field, the American Heart Association and Books for Babies, among other charities the Junior Women’s League contributes to.

“It’s a really good way we can honor Brittany and Shep,” Pugh said. “And it will bring the community together.”