ASSISTANCE LEAGUE MAKES 5K RACE A WINNER.

Byline: Bryan Winchell Special to the Daily News

When the runners at the seventh annual 5K Footsteps race in Santa Clarita wait for the starting gun to fire Sunday morning, they probably won't be thinking about all the preparation that goes into such a race.

The 89 members of the Assistance League of Santa Clarita spent, collectively, 500 to 700 hours organizing the event.

On race day itself, they must set up tables, put up poles, keep track of all the runners, prepare refreshments and take all the racers' times.

``We are a real hive of industry on race day,'' Assistance League President Kaylynn Smith said.

But putting together a race with as many as 400 participants means much more work than just those tasks performed on the day of the event.

The 12-member race committee was selected in September, and activities such as designing T-shirts and finding sponsors have kept members busy ever since.

``It may not sound like much to someone who's working full time, but for a volunteer, I've worked 20, 25 hours a week these last few weeks, and that's a lot,'' Jan Munroe said.

The Assistance League is a year-round volunteer group of Santa Clarita women - many hold full-time jobs - who raise money to buy clothing and shoes for disadvantaged children in their community.

``When you go (to) these schools and clothe the kids, you can see it really boosts their self-esteem,'' Smith said.

Even though the group helped clothe 500 kids last year, Smith said more can always be done.

``We had one family that was trading a pair of shoes between their kids, so they'd switch off going to school,'' Smith said. ``It's unbelievable to have this happening out here. I don't think people realize it.''

Fortunately for Smith, who said she puts in 40 to 50 hours a month for the league, 14 new members have joined up this year.

And that can only add to the amount of money they can raise. It came to about $13,000 last year.

The race, which will be moved to the fall starting in October 1997, is the biggest fund-raising event of the year for the league, closely followed by a spring fashion show. The league also provides teddy bears for firefighters and sheriff's deputies to give to kids at emergency scenes.

While runners can revel in the fact that their $17 registration fee goes to a good cause, they take home something tangible, too.

``They love the long-sleeved T-shirts,'' Munroe said.

This year's design, inspired by Cinco de Mayo, should catch some motorists' eyes Sunday, as it has six colors and a flashy logo with the name of the race in front and footprints down the sleeve.

Runners can register until the beginning of the race at 8 a.m., and trophies are awarded three deep to males and females in all 14 age categories.

For Smith and others in the league, all the hard work is worth it when they see the response from a child who receives a new outfit or pair of shoes.

``(The kids) are very appreciative,'' Smith said. ``That's when you really feel like you've done something valuable.''