ROBERTSDALE, Alabama -- Legend has it that St. Patrick banished all snakes from Ireland, chasing them into the sea after they attacked him during a 40-day fast on the top of a hill.

To this day there are no snakes in the British island nation and the Roman Catholic priest has since become known as the “Patron Saint of Ireland.”

Every year St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated throughout the world commemorating the day of his death believed to be toward the end of the 5th century and every year, the church and school in Robertsdale that bears his name holds a pair of events around St. Patrick’s Day which also serve as a fundraiser for the school.

On Sunday, March 10, the 24th running of St. Patrick’s Leprechaun Chase will be held at the church, with a 10K, 5K and 2-mile run.

You can still register for the run at a cost of $15 per entry up until Thursday, March 7 at Run-N-Tri in Mobile or and Running Wild in Fairhope, or up until midnight March 8 online at active.com, said Shaw Fin Bertagnolli, who has helped organize the run since its inception in 1988.

Race-day registration, which will cost $20, will be held from 6:30 to 7:45 a.m. with the first race set to begin at 7:45.

There will also be a DJ providing music, food and other entertainment at the church, Bertagnolli said.

Proceeds from the race will benefit the school. For more information, contact the school at 251-947-7395, by email at finolli54@yahoo.com or visit the school’s website, www.gulftel.com/stpatsch

Then on Saturday, March 16, the school will host its annual Wild Irish Benefit, from 5 to 10 p.m. in the school’s gymnasium.

The annual fundraiser will be in a drawdown-style format with the grand prize of $10,000, said St. Patrick’s School Principal Sister Margaret Harte.

There will also be a silent auction with baskets proved by each classroom from the school, 12 in all, along with baked goods and other sale items.

Tickets for the drawdown cost $100 each and you must be present to win. The person holding the winning ticket will simply have to answer one question to claim their prize:

“Who is the patron saint of Ireland.”