Third Our Roots Run Deep 5K Set for Jan. 9 to Support Fairhope’s Historic Jeanes School Site
Hope Community's third annual Our Roots Run Deep 5K starts at 8 a.m. Jan. 9, 2027, at the Anna T. Jeanes School property in Fairhope South, with proceeds going toward a teaching farm, kitchen, gardens and trails.
FAIRHOPE, Ala. — Hope Community has set the third annual Our Roots Run Deep 5K for Saturday, Jan. 9, 2027, and is inviting runners, walkers and local families to sign up. The race starts at 8 a.m. on the historic Anna T. Jeanes School property in Fairhope South. Money raised will go to Hope Community’s work to turn the property into a community center.
Early-bird registration costs $25 per person through Dec. 4. After that, the fee is $35 from Dec. 5 through the morning of the race.
More than a race
The course starts and finishes on the Jeanes School grounds, so people end the race on the same property their entry fees are helping to rebuild. Participants are invited to stay after they finish for refreshments, music and an awards ceremony.
Fairhope South’s own Demetrius “DJ Meat” Martin will provide the music. Cecil Christenberry, a longtime Hope Community supporter, will host the awards ceremony.
Hope Community says race proceeds will go directly to its ongoing revitalization of the Anna T. Jeanes site. Future plans for the grounds include:
- A teaching farm
- A community kitchen
- Outdoor gardens
- Walking paths
Registration at a glance
- Early bird: $25 per person through Dec. 4
- Standard: $35 per person from Dec. 5 through race-day morning
- Start time: 8 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 9, 2027
- Start and finish: Anna T. Jeanes School property, Fairhope South
Signing up before Dec. 4 saves $10 per person. Families entering several people should register early.
A young tradition
Our Roots Run Deep began in January 2025 as a fundraiser and a way to raise awareness of Hope Community’s work. The second race was held in January 2026. The January 2027 race will be the third, and the event has become one of the regular dates on the organization’s calendar, along with other gatherings that bring people onto the property.
The story of the Jeanes School
The school is named for Anna T. Jeanes, a Philadelphia Quaker philanthropist who lived from 1822 to 1907. Late in her life, she gave $1 million to establish a fund to improve rural schools for Black children in the South. The trust’s early overseers included Booker T. Washington and Hollis B. Frissell.
The Jeanes Fund became best known for its “Jeanes teachers,” also called Jeanes supervisors. These were usually experienced Black educators who traveled among rural schools to train teachers, improve buildings and instruction, and connect isolated communities with better materials and methods. The program supported Black rural education across the South for about half a century, and many schools took her name in gratitude.
The Fairhope South school served the community’s Black families during the era of segregated schools. The property is now recognized as a Baldwin County historical site.
About Hope Community
Hope Community became a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 2023 and set out to revitalize and restore the historic property. The City of Fairhope has leased the roughly 12-acre site to the organization.
Volunteers have already cleared parts of the grounds and built raised garden beds, compost areas, butterfly gardens and a picnic area with lending libraries under the live oaks. The organization reports more than 650 members.
Its longer-range plans, which the 5K helps fund, call for a teaching farm, a community garden and a teaching kitchen where people of all ages can learn to grow and cook healthy food. Hope Community has also described plans for an interactive exhibit honoring Anna T. Jeanes and the Fairhope South community, meeting spaces for local events, and nature trails.
The group also runs programs off the property, including Food RX, a series of monthly cooking classes held in partnership with USA Health and The Hive Foundation. It hosts a quarterly Story Slam at the Book Cellar in downtown Fairhope, and the Mobile Bay Makers Market has set up on the Jeanes grounds on alternating Sundays.
A new park next door
Another project is moving ahead on part of the same historic property. On Oct. 23, the City of Fairhope held a groundbreaking for Foundation Park, a 1.6-acre neighborhood park for children and families at the corner of South Section Street and Twin Beech Road. The city is building the park in partnership with the Fairhope/Point Clear Community Foundation, which plans to help pay for future additions, including a splash pad.
Taken together, the park and Hope Community’s plans for the rest of the site point to a busier future for the Jeanes grounds, as a place for play, learning, food and gathering in Fairhope South.
Tips for race day
- Dress for January. Mornings on the Eastern Shore can be chilly in early January, so layers you can take off as you warm up are a good idea.
- Arrive early. With an 8 a.m. start, give yourself time to park, check in and warm up.
- Walkers welcome. The event is open to walkers as well as runners, so it works for families and first-timers.
- Stay for the after-party. Refreshments, music by DJ Meat and the awards ceremony follow the race.
If you go
- What: Third annual Our Roots Run Deep 5K
- When: 8 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 9, 2027
- Where: Starts and finishes at the historic Anna T. Jeanes School property, Fairhope South
- Cost: $25 early bird through Dec. 4; $35 from Dec. 5 through race morning
- After the race: Refreshments, music by Demetrius “DJ Meat” Martin and awards hosted by Cecil Christenberry
- Benefits: Hope Community’s revitalization of the Jeanes site into a community center
For runners, it’s a 5K to start the new year. For Hope Community, every registration helps restore a property that has been part of Fairhope South for generations.
