Day of triple dozens occasion to remember

Weddings, lottery picks on agenda

Jamie Poignon at her home. Jamie turns 12 on 12/12/12.

For some, today’s date is only a nifty numerical event, a repeating lineup of 1s and 2s crowding a calendar square.

For others, it’s a wedding day, a chance to pick lucky lottery numbers, or a reason to run 12 kilometers.

For Jamie Poignon, Dec. 12, 2012, is pretty much the coolest day ever to turn 12. Jamie, a Bedford Junior High School sixth grader from Temperance, will celebrate the day she’s long awaited with a family gathering today and a party with friends this weekend.

“My family members always said stuff about it. I don’t think it really sank in until a couple of years ago,” she said.

Jamie’s mother gave birth at Mercy St. Vincent Medical Center on Dec. 12, 2000, several days after her Dec. 7 due date. Wendy Poignon said her daughter’s birthday celebration will include cake and decorations in keeping with the once-in-a-lifetime, triple-dozen date. “We’ve been planning this for years. We’ve been excited,” she said. “She thinks it’s her lucky day. I’m sure we’re going to buy some lottery tickets and some scratch-offs, and we’ll see if anything comes of it.”

The Poignons aren’t the only ones with that idea. The Ohio Lottery reported the numbers 1, 2, 1, 2 sold out for Tuesday and today's midday and evening drawings. The lottery has a liability limit — the highest amount it will pay out on a winning combination of numbers. Players no longer can pick those numbers once the liability is reached. Lottery spokesman Danielle Frizzi-Babb said it’s common for numbers to sell out whenever there’s a “significant” or repeating date.

The numbers motivated runners, too. More than 300 people registered for a just-for-kicks 12/12/12K run, scheduled to start at 12:12 a.m. today. By the time most of the Toledo area wakes up this morning, hundreds of runners should have made the multiple-loop run on roads around Levis Commons in Perrysburg.

Race director Ed O’Reilly of the Toledo Roadrunners Club also organized a 10K run on Oct. 10, 2010, and an 11K on Nov. 11, 2011. He called it “the end of the world series,” a wink and nod to Apocalypse predictions some base on the Mayan calendar. Second Sole running store helped with the race registration, and the Perrysburg store also was to serve at the race’s start and finish place, general manager Matt Folk said.

“I don’t know that there will be a lot of hard-core, competitive runners,” he said, adding the emphasis remained on the “unique, fun, social” aspect of night running on a special date.

To commemorate the event, race participants could buy a glow-in-the-dark shirt. Louann Cummings, a University of Findlay professor, hoped to wear that shirt today during a noon final she’s scheduled to give to an accounting class. She runs regularly with an early rising group that meets at 5:15 a.m.

“This is just a little bit earlier,” she said, noting she won’t have a chance to run on a repeating date again.

At the Lucas County Courthouse, officials prepared for an uptick in marriages on the special date. The Rev. Sandra Frost performs courthouse ceremonies and will be on hand today to marry couples. She said the date’s rarity and the ease of remembering the anniversary are two reasons some choose repeating dates to wed.

Probate Court Administrator Charles Shaffer anticipated today’s marriage activity to be more than a normal Wednesday’s but less than Valentine’s Day.

“It will be busy; they aren’t going to be lined up,” he said. “There are people that ... get married on these certain dates, and this is the last one [in our lifetime] you are going to see.”

Contact Vanessa McCray at: vmccray@theblade.com or 419-724-6065.