Craig Mitchell
Judge Craig Mitchell of the Los Angeles Superior Court, who founded the Skid Row Running Club in Los Angeles in 2012, will be speaking at the Rotary Club of Pasadena’s weekly meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 31, at 12 noon. The meeting is open to the public.
He will speak about the Skid Row Running Club and the benefits running brings to those on Skid Row who are participating in programs to overcome addiction and homelessness.
Craig Mitchell attended UCLA. After college he taught high school in South Central Los Angeles for 17 years. While teaching, he attended Southwestern Law School at night. Following law school, he was a deputy district attorney in Los Angeles for 11 years. As a prosecutor, he handled primarily murder and sexual assault cases.
In 2005, he was appointed to the Superior Court by Gov. Schwarzenegger. He currently presides over a felony trial court in downtown Los Angeles. He is married and has three children – one a teacher, another a marriage and family therapist, and another a lawyer.
Members of the Skid Row Running Club run three times a week, and compete in an average of three marathons a year and other running events. Every year, members who are faithful to the program compete in an international marathon.
The SRRC has traveled to Ghana, Rome, Berlin, Israel, Vietnam, Ecuador and most recently to Egypt where 50 runners from Skid Row participated in the Egyptian Marathon in Luxor.
In the last 10 years, hundreds of runners have maintained their sobriety, and obtained stable housing and full-time employment with the assistance of the SRRC. While running is central to the program, it is the sense of community, mutual accountability, and even the sense of family that are the vital components that the Club provides its members.
The SRRC is the subject of a full-length documentary, “Skid Row Marathon,” that has won awards in over 20 film festivals worldwide.
To attend the Rotary Club meeting in person at the University Club of Pasadena, RSVP is required. You can call (626) 683-8243 or email office@pasadenarotary.com to RSVP.
The University Club is at 175 N. Oakland Ave. in Pasadena.
To attend via Zoom, go to https://us02web.zoom.us/j/
For more information, visit www.pasadenarotary.com.
