The race begins at 9 a.m. following registration at 8:30 a.m. at the St. Francis/St. Henry campus. Participation fees are $25 for those age 15 and older and $15 for runners 14 and younger. The money raised is used to fund the costs involved in putting on the event with the remaining proceeds placed in a general fund for the school.

‘Memory Markers’ are for sale online with up to two names on each for $20 until 11:59 p.m. on Friday. It is $10 to re-stake a marker from a previous year. The markers are placed all along the route, which starts at St. Francis and zigzags its way around road construction on Olive St. to 6th St. and back.

Holly Erbes is a kindergarten teacher at St. Francis and created the event, which ran for the first time in 2019.

“All Souls’ Day celebrates the lives of those we have lost,” Erbes said. “And rather than being sad, this day is met with celebration and remembrance of the lives that were lived.”

A large group of runners get ready to complete the Soles for Soles 5k in 2019. The race has brought in 150 people over the last two years.

Erbes ran all through high school and college, and while running has always been a part of her life, it took on a form of therapy when she was grieving the losses of two miscarriages.

“In the early stages of my grief, I never wanted to talk to anyone, and it’s really how I coped with our losses,” she said.

Running became an expression of grief for Erbes. As she put one foot in front of the other, she came up with the idea for a 5k memorializing loved ones that had been lost.

“I knew I couldn’t do a run just geared toward miscarriages, so that’s why the idea of doing it around All Souls’ Day came about, because everyone has lost someone they have loved in their life at one point,” she said.

Each of the 150 people who participated in the 5k over the last two years carried their own unique reasons to run. But, the ‘Angel Baby Mile’ that remembers the losses of infants and children does leave a lasting impact that’s hard to ignore.

Holly Erbes daughters Charlotte and Amelia stand with a ‘Memory Marker’ for a sibling their mother lost in a miscarriage. These markers for the losses of children are placed around the lake near Merle Hibbs. (Photo from the event in 2020)

“I still have a message on my phone from a friend who said ‘Angel mile gave me chills as I read each sweet baby’s name and said a prayer. The coolest thing ever,'” Erbes said.

Erbes has also organized shared burial ceremonies in Marshalltown the last two years to share grief and work towards closure for families who have lost young and unborn children. She plans to continue both events to bring people together in different stages of loss.

Next year, Erbes hopes to print Memory Markers in Spanish to accommodate the large community that speaks the language in Marshalltown.

“We are wanting to embrace diversity not only within our parish and school community but as well as the entire city of Marshalltown,” She said “We hope that by offering Memory Markers in a dual language, we can help all members of the community honor loved ones who have passed away.”

Erbes will be running herself, and she’s hopeful for a great turnout on Saturday.

“I do love running, but as I get older, my joints don’t love it as much as they used to,” she said. “I don’t know if I would classify myself as fast…but I can make a mile in under 9 minutes, so that’s a win for me!”

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