Student's sponsoring 5K Walk and Basketball Tournament for Pediatric Cancer Research
March 01, 2016
Bevill State Community College’s Fayette Campus’ Student Government Association and Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) Chapter is sponsoring two events on April 2 to help raise money for pediatric cancer research at Children’s of Alabama in Birmingham.
The first event, a 5K Walk/Fun Run begins at 8:30 a.m. The walk begins on the Fayette Campus of the College. Participants can pre-register until March 25 for a fee of $25, which incudes a t-shirt. If you miss the pre-registration period, you can register for $15 the day of the event beginning at 7:30 a.m.
The day also includes a “3 on 3” double elimination basketball tournament. Check-in for the tournament begins at 9:30 with tipoff at 10 a.m. Teams must pre-register by March 25 and pay $15 per person. Each team is limited to 5 players. The registration fee includes a t-shirt for each team member, and the winning team will receive a trophy.
If you don’t want to play in the tournament, you can still be involved with the event. Admission is $3 at the gate for non-players and concessions will be sold during the tournament.
All proceeds are going to support Children’s of Alabama’s pediatric cancer research. Children’s of Alabama is the 10th busiest pediatric medical center in the United States. The Alabama Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Disorders at Children's of Alabama is the state's only comprehensive center for pediatric cancer and other blood disorders, treating 90 percent of all such patients diagnosed in Alabama.
One of these patients is Gabriella Wages, the daughter of David Wages, a math instructor at Bevill State and the sponsor of the Fayette Campus SGA, and Karisa Wages. "I was excited about this fundraiser from the moment PTK Sponsor Dr. Kristie Ramsey first mentioned doing it,” said Wages. “Cancer kills more children than any other disease, yet childhood cancer research is grossly underfunded. Adult cancer research receives 24 times more funding. In the last twenty years, roughly four new drugs have been approved for children as opposed to about two hundred for adults. We do not want to downplay the importance of adult cancer research. We just want people to be aware that very little of their normal contributions to cancer organizations impact children (about 4 cents of every dollar). So to help the 1 out of every 300 children impacted by cancer, please consider donating directly to pediatric cancer research centers such as the one found at Children’s of Alabama.”
Specialized pediatric services exist for all forms of childhood cancer, leukemia, brain and spinal cord tumors, hemophilia and other bleeding disorders and sickle cell diseases in the state. The Children’s of Alabama’s pediatric cancer research Center is a partnership between Children’s and the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Division of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology.
The ACCCBD is home to the only pediatric programs in blood and marrow transplantation, childhood cancer survivorship, developmental cancer therapeutics, pediatric neuro-oncology, pediatric hemophilia and sickle cell disease in the state of Alabama. The cancer program is ranked among the best in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. More information is available at www.childrensal.org.
For more information about the 5K Walk/Fun Run, the basketball tournament, and how you can help support Bevill State’s fundraising efforts, contact David Wages at dwages@bscc.edu or by calling 800.648.3271, ext. 5194.