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Participants walk along Race Street during the 14th Annual "Moms Walk for a Cure" event. Over 500 people registered for the walk to support breast cancer research. (FILE)

Second annual Athens Race for the Cure to raise money for breast cancer research

One in eight women and one in 1,000 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime, so Becca Thomas said students will likely feel inclined to support Athens Race for the Cure.

“Unfortunately, (students) might, someday in their lifetime, know someone very close to them faced with this disease,” Thomas, the director of events for Susan G. Komen for the Cure in the Columbus area, said. “Bringing (the race to Athens) provides an opportunity for students to come out and show their support for this cause and get involved and make a difference.”

The second annual Athens Race for the Cure — part of the Susan G. Komen association helping to find a cure for breast cancer — will take place Sunday. Registration will open at 10 a.m., and the 5K run and walk will commence at noon. For those who register early, costs are $25 for adults, $20 for breast cancer survivors, $15 for students, $10 for ages three to 15 and $5 for children under the age of two. Costs rise by $5 the day of the event.

Before and after the race, there will be an expo area in the Peden Stadium parking lot open for people to walk around. In this area, sponsors will hand out samples and give-a-ways, Thomas said. New to the expo area this year are food trucks native to Athens. An opening ceremony where two survivors will give their testimonies starts at 11:30 a.m, she said.

Last year, 1,650 people signed up for the first Athens Race for the Cure. Thomas is hoping to reach those numbers this year.

“We’re really hoping to hit the same numbers as last year, but it kind of depends on the next couple of days,” Thomas said.

People can register at any time online, at the Athens Community Center on Saturday or the day of the event at Walter Field House, Thomas said.

“So even if someone wakes up on Sunday and decides they want to do a 5K or a one-mile walk, we would welcome them,” she said.

As of press time, Thomas said more than 900 people have signed up and more than $36,000 has been raised.

“We are a little bit under in terms of fundraising … so we are hoping that we will see an increase over the weekend,” she said. “For all of the money that we raise through registration and fundraising, we are able to support local community programs that help women who are under or uninsured right here in central and southeastern Ohio.”

One of the local programs that receives money from Race for the Cure is the Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, which helps Athens and surrounding counties, Thomas said.

“It’s a mobile unit that actually drives around and serves Athens and contiguous counties and provides resources (and) breast health awareness materials,” Thomas said. “It’s really reaching a community that would otherwise not have access to breast health awareness.”

The OU School of Nursing also helps with the Race for the Cure. Eliza Harper, who oversees the nursing students who help, said they have been working with Susan G. Komen for five years. Before the first Race for the Cure, the nursing school would donate the money they raised through its own 5K, Pink Paws for the Cause, Harper, an assistant professor of nursing, said.

“(Susan G. Komen) saw how the campus rallied and how motivated the nursing students were,” she said.

Harper said it is important for nursing students to get involved with organizations and “work toward a common goal.”

“Nurses play a huge part in health promotion and prevention,” she said. “They need to be exposed to that and not just read about it in books.”

Tayler Sweeney, a junior studying marketing, is participating in the race Sunday because her mother is a breast cancer survivor of three years. Sweeney said it is important for people to give back and to support each other.

“It’s important for girls especially to support each other,” she said. “I think it’s rewarding ... the feeling of everyone coming together. It’s nice to see other people care about it.”

@georgiadee35

gd497415@ohio.edu

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