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Cooper River Bridge Run T-shirts travel to Peru by Dick Peterson Special to The Catalyst When Jay and LeeAnn Reigart packed for their medical mission trip to Peru in February 2004, they also packed a box of used clothing—“stuff we had laying around the house,” Jay said.   Peruvian children show off their Cooper River Bridge Run T-shirts given to them by LeeAnn and Jay Reigart during a February medical missions trip. The box included a history of Cooper River Bridge T-shirts they had collected through the years. “We're both runners,” Jay said. “I began running the bridge in 1984 and LeeAnn has run it 10 or 15 times herself.”   They have both run marathons, he said. In fact, LeeAnn has blended her love for running into a business called Parties on the Run, a fun-packed way for brides-to-be to enjoy their last few hours of singleness with their friends.   “It's an alternative to hanging out at a bar or waiting for a stripper,” LeeAnn said. “The bride wears a veil and garter and carries a bouquet of suckers.”   With her bridesmaid and friends, she follows a course through downtown Charleston stopping at bridal spots and churches, giving away suckers and picking up a scavenger list of wedding-related items. “It combines the challenge of a scavenger hunt with the excitment of a run,” she said, and the parties can be adapted to any special celebration.   When LeeAnn announced she would be taking a medical mission trip to Peru, Jay decided it would not be without him. “She's a nurse. She heard about the opportunity from her cousin, a doctor,” Jay said.   Working with a group sponsored by Volunteers in Medical Missions, Jay , a civil engineerm and LeeAnn helped dispense medications at a clinic in a poor area in the outskirts of Lima. He said the clinic treated more than 1,500 people that week.   With little or no access to medical care, people flocked to the clinic, which was set up in a tent—“like a big circus tent,” Jay said. “They were lining up outside at 5 a.m.”   The children love to have their picture taken, he said, especially with a digital camera.“They like seeing their photo right away, so getting them to pose in their T-shirts was an easy task.” Editor's note: The article ran in the 2006 Cooper River Bridge Run magazine and is reprinted with permission. For information on the Cooper River Bridge Run, visit http://www.bridgerun.com or call 937-4183.    Parties on the Run Parties on the Run was inspired by MUSC nurse LeeAnn Reigart's passion for running, parties and fun.   “I wanted something that was healthy and an alternative to hanging out at a bar,” said Reigart. “Parties on the Run  can be geared for all ages.”   For information on Parties on the Run, visit its Web site at http://www.partiesontherun.net or call Reigart at 442-5114. Friday, March 24, 2006 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Island papers at 849-1778, ext. 201.