Two fundraising events are sure to get participants moving and will raise money for good causes as Starkville hosts the Pink Heals 5K and the 2015 Golden Triangle Walk to End Alzheimer’s Saturday.
Registration for the Pink Heals event begins at 7:30 a.m., and the race itself starts 30 minutes later. Its course will take participants from Fire Station No. 2, located at 118 Airport Road, through Starkville’s industrial park area and back to the facility.
There is a $25 registration fee per participant, Starkville Fire Chief Charles Yarbrough said, and the money raised will remain in the community and help pay for ultrasounds and mammograms.
The Golden Triangle Walk to End Alzheimer’s registration begins at 9 a.m., and the race starts an hour later.
The course will take participants from the old courthouse, located on Main Street, to the Cotton District, and then back to the courthouse via Russell, Lampkin and South Washington streets.
This is Starkville Fire Department’s fifth year to host the Pink Heals event, Yarbrough said, and last year’s run garnered about 75-100 participants.
Alzheimer’s walk organizer Cindy Brown said 502 people have registered for this year’s event, eclipsing the goal of 400 participants.
There’s no registration fee for the walk, she said, as various teams have all worked to raise money for the cause. Donations are accepted at the event, she said.
U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker will serve as the walk’s honorary champion. He will speak at a formal ceremony at 9:45 a.m. before participating in the event.
“Everybody knows about Relay for Life, but people don’t realize there are eight (Walks to End Alzheimer’s) across Mississippi. Jackson has the biggest Alzheimer’s walk in the state, but I think we can eventually get more people – more than their 1,100 – downtown to participate. I want our event to be the biggest walk in Mississippi,” Brown said. “If we get the word out – do what we’re supposed to do – who is to say we can’t get 1,100 downtown in the future?”
Although both events are scheduled about the same time Saturday, Yarbrough said he’s hopeful those who participate in the Pink Heals 5K can join in the Alzheimer’s walk.
“Just like (the Alzheimer’s walk organizers), we want to raise money and awareness. Pink Heals works to do that with any form of cancer women experience. I’ve been encouraging people all week that if they have a family member who has suffered through Alzheimer’s, go and support them, and vice versa with cancer. If cancer runs in your family, I urge you to support us,” he said. “I know two people who have suffered through Alzheimer’s, and that means I feel like I have to go and support the cause there as well.”
Both events will hold youth-focused functions at their conclusion. Pink Heals will host a 1-mile costume run for kids after the 5K, and a Trunk or Treat event will be held at both events.
The Walk to End Alzheimer’s Trunk or Treat begins at 11:30 a.m. Children will give $1 to participate, and the money will go toward the event’s $40,000 fundraising goal.
More than 60 teams have signed up for the event. Numerous groups, Brown said, have easily eclipsed the $1,000 fundraising mark.
“Our community is really involved, and I hope everyone comes out to support our cause,” she said.
Starkville Fire Department will also reveal a Ford Crown Victoria donated by the police department and painted pink for the event, its name and the family it honors at Pink Heals.
Yarbrough also said SFD has plans to develop a Pink Heals charter, which will allow the department to participate in various Pink Heals events across Alabama and Mississippi in the future.
“Everyone should dress in pink and be ready to have fun Saturday,” he said.
Carl Smith covers Starkville and Oktibbeha County for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter @StarkDispatch
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