Organizers are hoping the Toby’s Dream 5K road race at Windham High School on Memorial Day weekend will “pave” the way to the campaign’s success.

The campaign, meant to honor the late Toby Pennels, a Casco-based financial adviser, and benefit the Windham Veterans Association, is running about $15,000 short of its $50,000 fundraising target. The fundraiser, which began Jan. 5, ends on Memorial Day.

The race will be held at 9 a.m. on Saturday, May 23, at Windham High School. The route heads toward the routes 202-302 rotary, veers left onto Lotts Drive, and then reverses back to the high school parking lot, where the finish line will be located. According to Pennels’ daughter, Taylor, the route was designed with Pennels’ long service on the Windham-Raymond school board in mind.

“It will be a flat course that runs by many buildings that Toby worked in or visited while serving Regional School Unit 14,” she said. “This will be a great way to celebrate my dad and all veterans on Memorial Day weekend.”

The pre-registration race entry fee costs $20, while same-day registration costs $25.

When Pennels became president of the Windham Veterans Association, he set out to resurrect the group’s flagging finances. Key to the effort was Pennels’ plan to pave the Windham Veterans Center’s bumpy dirt access road and parking lot behind the Windham Mall, which, he believed, would increase hall rental income and help the veterans organization keep up with its bills. Upon assuming the association’s presidency in summer 2012, Pennels established a paving account.

The paving account had accrued about $4,000 by September 2014, when Pennels died as a result of injuries sustained in a motorcycle crash near Rangeley. It has since grown to nearly $35,000 as a result of the fundraiser. The goal of the Toby’s Dream campaign is to use the $50,000 to pave the access road and parking lot.

On the race’s Facebook event page, organizers call on race participants to “help pave the dream.”

The campaign has been pioneered by Don Swander, the association’s president from 2005-2012. According to Swander, after a large volume of donations arrived in the early days of the campaign, donations began to dwindle in late February. He subsequently began to plan the 5K with Pennels’ wife, Brenda, and Windham High School’s cross-country coach Jeff Riddle.

“The 5K race on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend is sort of our finale,” Swander said. “That’s our last-ditch effort to bring money in.”

There will be a post-race brunch at the high school cafeteria, featuring raffle drawings and an awards ceremony. Race organizers will raffle off a $3,000 paddleboard package donated by Kittery Trading Post that includes a 121?2-foot paddleboard, a paddle and an inflatable life vest. A $2,500, 14-karat white gold sapphire and diamond donated by Windham Jewelers will be raffled, as well. Raffle tickets will be available at the race.

Brenda Pennels said she hopes for a large turnout at the Saturday event.

“My major focus right now is to increase attendance for the race,” she said. “People that are not wanting to run or walk can certainly join us for the brunch and take advantage of the silent auction, the raffles and the prizes that we’re going to have that day.”

“Were hoping to have a great event and get that parking lot and road paved,” Taylor Pennels added.

Toby’s Dream 5K organizer Don Swander holds a “wing span” worth of raffle tickets.Staff photo by Ezra Silk