POCATELLO — Miss USA Alma Cooper is set to make an appearance at the Pocatello Marathon pasta dinner on Friday evening.

The event is a precursor to the actual running of the marathon on Saturday.

Mary Calley, the race director for the marathon, said the pasta dinner will be held at the ICCU Bengal Alumni Center, 1601 E. Bonneville St., at 5:30 p.m. Friday. Cooper, a Michigan native, will be speaking during the event.

“Miss USA will be speaking at 6 p.m.,” Calley said.

Tickets to attend the pasta dinner are $25 each and are available at the door.

Cooper was invited to speak at the dinner after she tagged the Pocatello Marathon in one of her training videos on social media. Marathon organizers then reached out to her and asked her to speak at the pasta dinner.

Calley said she’s looking forward to hearing Cooper’s speech at the pasta dinner because she has an inspiring story. Cooper is only 22 years old but is already an active duty Army officer who is working toward a master’s degree in statistics at Stanford University.

“I thought it would be cool to motivate the runners so that hopefully they can have a successful race day,” Calley said.

Cooper’s also working toward the goal of running the Abbott World Marathon Majors, a series of marathons held across the globe.

The Pocatello Marathon’s pasta dinner is being held for the first time in several years.

“It was a tradition that we do a pasta dinner,” Calley said. “We haven’t done it since COVID.”

The Pocatello Marathon will start at 6:15 a.m. on Saturday at Buckskin Road and Hilltop Road.

“We have the full marathon, half marathon, 10K, 5K and kids races as well,” Calley said.

This year is the 25th year the Pocatello Marathon has been held. Right now there are about 1,000 people who are signed up to compete, and it’s almost full in all categories.

“It started as an idea that someone had, and it has grown over the years,” Calley said. “It’s fun to see all the people who have passed through and continue to support us.”

Calley looks forward to the marathon because she loves how it brings the community together. People come from all over the country to compete in this marathon, and she loves sharing Pocatello with them.

“I love interacting with people from all over,” Calley said. “I love sharing a little piece of what we have over here and seeing the joy on people’s faces when they cross the finish line.”

Calley expressed gratitude for everyone who comes together to make the Pocatello Marathon possible. The event wouldn’t happen every year without the sponsors and volunteers who make it happen.

“We’re grateful for what they do for us every year,” Calley said. “We can’t do this without them, so big thanks all around.”

More information about the Pocatello Marathon can be found at pocatellomarathon.com.