There wasn't any ice paved within the walls of the Runner's Edge store on Main Street in Farmingdale, but NHL Hall of Famer Pat LaFontaine still made an appearance - and for a worthy cause.

LaFontaine introduced the inaugural Main Street Mile in Farmingdale, an event that North Fork Bank is sponsoring and Runner's Edge is presenting. Henry Schein, Inc. and the Carman Foundation for Children are also involved in the Sept. 3 one-mile race in which both elite and recreational runners are invited to participate.

"This is a great way for families to kickoff the Labor Day weekend," LaFontaine said. " I am looking forward to seeing Long Island come together for such a great cause."

"We feel it is very important to give back to the community," added James Sciolto, senior vice president and regional administrator for North Fork Bank.

Runner's Edge owner Bob Cook was also excited to be involved in the race.

"This is a unique race and we are able to create some interest with kids and they will understand what this is for," Cook said.

Mark Leff, a partner strategy manager with Melville-based Cisco Systems, is seeking to drive this national project to a more local level.

"Local involvement helps drive awareness," Leff said. "One of our children might need one of these facilities some day."

Farmingdale Village Attorney and Carman Foundation Director Greg Carman said the village is enthusiastic about the event and hopes to make it an annual one.

"The village sees this as an opportune way of drawing a lot of positive attention to Main Street businesses," Carman said. "I met with the [Farmingdale] Chamber of Commerce on this and am getting some of the more active chamber members to reach out and get support for this event."

Proceeds from the race will go toward CiC's immediate goal - to raise funds to build interactive playrooms in children's hospitals throughout North America. Through innovative communications tools, these playrooms are meant to replace the isolation of a hospital with a connection to family, friends and celebrities during their hospital stay. This effort paves the way for their motto "no child in the fight for life or health should ever have to go it alone."

The rooms, dubbed the Lion's Den, have state of the art technology from Microsoft and Cisco Systems. Patients receive a "smart" card when they check into the hospital, identifying them as members of a special community with unique privileges. The key is an ID device that allows each child to personalize their experience within the Lion's Den room with activities such as web surfing, video game playing and videoconferencing.

"The Lion's Den is a place where hospitalized children can connect with people and activities of their normal lives," the CiC mission statement boasts.

The inaugural Lion's Den recently opened at Maria Fareri Children's Hospital in Westchester. George Ross from the television show The Apprentice was on hand for the ribbon cutting ceremony. Other celebrities attached to the Foundation include Michael J. Fox, Denis Leary, Mario Lemieux, Tim Robbins and Keifer Sutherland.

Registration is $15 per person if postmarked by Aug. 5 and $17 if postmarked by Aug. 30. The fee is $20 if registering on the day of the race. There is a $500 bonus for anyone who breaks four minutes in the Main Street Mile. There will be a separate Kids Fun Run, but it will only be a quarter of a mile long. Information on the race is available on Companions in Courage website at www.cic16.org. Anyone interested in the Main Street Mile can also contact the Runner's Edge at 420-7963. Participants will also be able to register for the Main Street Mile on http://www.active.com.