Runners get year off on the right foot with Gordy’s First Race

WESTFIELD — Gordy’s First Race 5K and 10K returned another year on New Year’s Day at the Westfield Boys & Girls Club, remembering the life and legacy of longtime runner and Boys & Girls Club supporter Gordon Bates.

Sponsored by the club, the race has grown over the last decade-plus as runners each year start the new year off with the race.

Westfield Boys & Girls CEO Club Bo Sullivan said that, as a volunteer of the club, Bates was already a lead on the club’s annual half marathon event. After his passing in 2008, friends of Bates from the Springfield Runners Club and the Boys & Girls club eventually came together and create this event in Bates’ honor.