Q Fitness and Wellness is using this year’s annual 5K to support Charlotte Pride, help support a future scholarship fund honoring Lance Sotelo and continue growing an event that has become more than simply completing a race.
The QFW 5K, scheduled for June 13 at McAlpine Creek Park, is organized by Q Fitness and Wellness, the Charlotte-based LGBTQ+ wellness business founded by Crem Morris-Frazier. Over time, the race has grown beyond a traditional fitness event into a larger community event that brings together runners, local businesses, LGBTQ+ organizations and supporters from across Charlotte. Participants include experienced runners, casual walkers, fitness groups and community members attending socially through the event’s newer ZeroK option.
For Richard Stevens Jr., board chair of the Carolinas LGBT+ Chamber of Commerce, the QFW 5K represents several stories happening at once: the growth of a local LGBTQ+ small business, the expansion of a long-running wellness event and now an effort connected to Lance Sotelo’s legacy.
“Q Fitness and Wellness is exactly the kind of small business story the Chamber exists to support and amplify,” Stevens said. “Crem came to Charlotte as COVID restrictions were lifting and built something that started as a digital wellness platform. Today, Q Fitness and Wellness is a physical space, a community hub, and a brand with the credibility to bring people together for something bigger than itself.”
Q Fitness and Wellness began during a period when many people were still trying to reconnect with routines, movement and community after years of disruption tied to the COVID-19 pandemic. Fitness businesses were rebuilding trust while many people were still dealing with isolation, uncertainty and disconnection.
Morris-Frazier started with virtual clients, but the goal was never simply to create workouts. Instead, the focus was creating access, consistency and connection during a period when many people needed all three. Since then, Q Fitness and Wellness has grown into a physical space and LGBTQ+ small business with a visible presence in Charlotte’s wellness community.
The business has also evolved into a space where fitness intersects with confidence, support and belonging. Stevens said that kind of evolution is part of what the Chamber hopes to encourage among LGBTQ+ small businesses throughout the Carolinas.
“As a small business owner, it means a lot to use what we have built to support something bigger than ourselves,” Morris-Frazier said.
“CLGBTCC is an incubator for small business members, but incubation does not always look like a formal program,” Stevens said. “Sometimes it looks like visibility, relationships, trust and helping a member grow into a platform for community impact. That is what Crem has done with Q Fitness and Wellness.” Stevens described the event as “member-led community impact in motion” and said it reflects “the ecosystem working the way it should.”
This year’s event is also connected to Lance Sotelo, a young runner, Queens University graduate and member of Charlotte’s LGBTQ+ community who died earlier this year after being struck by a vehicle near East 36th Street and The Plaza in Charlotte. He was 25.
His death prompted a public outpouring of grief across Charlotte, including friends, runners, classmates and members of the LGBTQ+ community who knew him.
Sotelo moved to Charlotte in 2019 to attend Queens University of Charlotte. His mother, Jeanne Sotelo, founder of Lance’s Legacy, said one of his earliest experiences in the city coincided with Charlotte Pride weekend.
“When Lance moved into Queens as a freshman, it was Pride weekend in Charlotte,” Sotelo said. “Our whole family went to Charlotte Pride together, and I think that experience was part of what made him fall in love with the city.”
Over time, Sotelo became involved in several parts of Charlotte life through school, running and community involvement. In addition to competing on Queens University’s track and field team, he completed the Charlotte Marathon in November 2025, earned his MBA from Queens University of Charlotte in May 2025 and served as student body president during his time at Queens.
In the months since his death, friends and supporters have continued sharing memories of Sotelo online, remembering him as both a dedicated runner and a visible presence within Charlotte’s LGBTQ+ community. His connection to running, student leadership and community involvement is now becoming part of the broader mission behind Lance’s Legacy.
Now, Sotelo’s story is becoming connected to a future scholarship effort.
Jeanne Sotelo said the goal is not for the scholarship to support only another runner, but a student who reflects the qualities her son carried with him: someone accepting, encouraging and committed to helping others.
“Running was important to Lance, but his legacy is bigger than running,” she said. “He was accepting of everyone, he encouraged people to do better and be better, and he made people feel seen. For us, this scholarship is about continuing Lance’s spirit by supporting LGBTQ+ students who are building their futures and giving back to their communities.”
For Stevens, the partnership between Q Fitness and Wellness and Lance’s Legacy reflects a broader example of what can happen when LGBTQ+ small businesses become stable enough and visible enough to support larger community efforts. He said the event shows how a business that began as a wellness platform can grow into a broader community connector capable of supporting causes, partnerships and people beyond its own walls.
The event itself is also continuing to evolve. This year’s QFW 5K includes both the traditional race and a new “ZeroK” option for people who want to participate without running or walking the course. The traditional QFW 5K remains open to runners, walkers, joggers and anyone who wants to complete the course at their own pace.
The new ZeroK option is designed for people who want to attend, cheer, visit vendors, support the scholarship effort or participate socially during the event without completing the course itself. Morris-Frazier said the ZeroK is not intended as an anti-fitness alternative, but another way to make the event more inclusive of different bodies, comfort levels and interests.
People can still run or walk the traditional course, while others may choose to support friends, bring a team, donate or simply attend. All forms of participation are welcomed. The expanded format also allows people who may not feel comfortable participating in a race environment to still attend and engage with the event socially.
“The QFW 5K has always been about more than finishing a course,” Morris-Frazier said. “It is about movement, wellness, community and creating space for people to show up as they are. Being able to connect this year’s event to Lance’s legacy makes that mission even more meaningful.”
The ZeroK also creates another way for Chamber members, corporate teams, families, Pride supporters and community partners to participate even if they do not identify as runners. Some participants may run or walk the course, while others may choose to cheer, donate or attend socially throughout the event.
The QFW 5K will take place Saturday, June 13 at McAlpine Creek Park. Participants can register for either the 5K or the ZeroK here: raceroster.com/events/2026/115505/q-fitness-and-wellness-5k.