Caltrans Cares Team from left to right front to back: Angela Shepard, Mariano Pontillas, Zilan Chen, Pete Spaulding, and Vivian Nguyen are kneeling. Matthew Friedman, Ann Mahaney, Blair Thompson, Cindy Pribyl, Katelynn Krycia, Jeaneete Mactzul and Al Kwan are standing in the middle row and Lee Beebe, Peter Meshot, Isabel Meshot, Brian Maguire, Monique Maguire, Alex Kenefick and Ted Evans are in the back row. Photo Courtesy of Event Photographer Rochelle Pastor 
By Erin von Tersch
Headquarters Public Information Officer
A group of Caltrans employees got together Thanksgiving morning and ran to feed the hungry, supporting the Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services, along with nearly 29,000 other people.
Blair Thompson, who has been with Caltrans for just less than a year as the Innovation, Risk and Strategic Management Chief, said he saw that Caltrans collects canned food for the Sacramento Food Bank, and supports healthy living in the Department’s goals and with Bike to Work Month in May, and suggested forming a team for the Run to Feed the Hungry event.
“I’ve been running for a couple years now,” Thompson said. “I wanted to create a team to demonstrate that Caltrans really does care. This puts the Caltrans brand out there in a very positive way.”
Just one month before the registration deadline, Thompson asked Executive Management about forming a Caltrans team, and so Caltrans Cares was born.
In just one month, 27 employees paid the $55 registration fee and signed up to run or walk a 5K (3.1 miles) or 10 K (6.2 miles) in east Sacramento at 9 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning. A percentage of the registration fee went toward providing meals for Sacramento’s hungry population.
Thompson said he used to be 70 pounds heavier, and enjoys encouraging his co-workers to practice active transportation, which turns into living a healthier lifestyle.