Susan G. Komen® Houston Announces Annual Race for the Cure®
City’s Largest Footrace Returns to Downtown Houston
Susan G. Komen® Houston has officially kicked off registration and is gearing up for its 24th annual Susan G. Komen Houston Race for the Cure®. On October 4, 2014, Downtown Houston will welcome the city’s largest footrace and a wave of pink runners, all joining together to raise funds for lifesaving services and to help bring an end to breast cancer, forever.
Komen Houston Race for the Cure® is Komen Houston’s largest annual fundraiser, and the money raised through this event helps fund programs in the seven-county area it serves in and around Houston to provide breast cancer education, screening, treatment and support services for men and women who may not be able to afford them.
75% of the funds raised stay right here in Houston to support education programs, mammograms, patient navigation, treatment and support groups provided by the local health organizations it funds, and 25% of the funds go to vital breast cancer research on a national level, but with a large, state-of-the-art Medical Center in the heart of the city, many of those research grants end up coming back to Houston. Race participation and involvement is crucial in order to reduce the number of deaths due to breast cancer.
Runners and walkers, alike, can sign up to participate in the Komen Houston Race for the Cure® by joining an existing team, forming a new team, or by registering on their own. Komen Houston encourages Houstonians to join a team and donate or fundraise $100 this year. Its new #Raceto100 campaign challenges Houstonians to go beyond simply registering, and to raise or donate $100 this year. $100 can provide several patients with the first steps towards their treatment, such as a consultation visit and clinical breast exam, and is a reachable goal for participants.
“The annual Komen Houston Race for the Cure is a crucial fundraising and awareness event for the organization as a whole,” says Adriana M. Higgins, Executive Director of Komen Houston. “Thanks to the generous and dedicated runners and supporters throughout the city, Komen Houston is able to provide grants to area organizations and service providers that are making incredible strides to put an end to breast cancer for thousands of men and women.”
Houston native, Kristen Barley, is a breast cancer survivor and passionate advocate of breast cancer awareness and early screening. Kristen has joined Komen Houston as this year’s Race Chair, sponsored for the 10th year by Marathon Oil Corporation.
The 2014 Komen Houston Race for the Cure® route is a USATF 5K course with running and walking events, including a 5K timed competitive run, 5K timed non-competitive run and a 5K walk and family walk. Participants who are unable to attend the physical Race are welcome to fundraise and participate through Sleep in for the Cure®.
For more information regarding Komen Houston, Race for the Cure® or any of its other events, please contact Allison Huseman at 713-225-0880 or allison@integrateagency.