Knoxville Raises Awareness for
Breast Cancer
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. On Sunday, thousands put on their tennis shoes to
walk for a cure. The American Cancer Society sponsored event, Making Strides of Knoxville, was held Oct.
5,2014 in Worlds Fair Park. The event brought communities, companies and
individuals together to raise awareness for breast cancer and to celebrate its
survivors.
The event brought in more than 100 teams
with more than 1,000 participants. Altogether $114,765.00 was raised for breast
cancer research.
“The fight to end breast cancer
starts with one single step,” said an American Cancer Society representative. This
5k non-competitive event helps raise a great deal of awareness.
Survivors walked alongside those who
had lost their loved ones. They each stepping in sync for common goal.
The survivors contribute friends and family for their success in
beating the disease. “I could not have done it without the help of my friends,
family and members of Rusty Wallace of Callahan Kia’s The Kia Soul Sisters,” said breast cancer survivor Lisa Carter.
Pink is the official color for breast cancer awareness. In
celebration of that, Worlds Fair Park was full of pink. Pink balloons, shirts,
hats, pom-poms and even pink hair. “I wear pink for my wife, who is a breast
cancer survivor” says Mike Toney.
The theme for the event was HOPE. Event goers signed the large
billboard with memories in honor of individuals who have lost their fight with
breast cancer.
The teams competed with others to donate the most money to the
event. The team that raised the most was team Prayer Warriors led by Stephanie
Thompson, a breast cancer survivor. The team raised more than $9,000 dollars.
Multiple area companies and
businesses participated in the event. Rusty Wallace Kia of Callahan Rd. was a
large sponsor as well as Tennessee Farm Bureau Insurance. Tennova Physicians
Regional Medical Center was the largest donator with a donation of six thousand
dollars. Tennessee Farm Bureau Insurance Agent Dustin Johnson says “sponsoring
this event is one of the most important things we do.”
