AUBURN - With a little bit of shoe leather and a few bandages, a group of runners will fight cancer one mile at a time.
Sunday was the kickoff of the first Brian's Invitational, a relay and fundraiser for cancer awareness that the organizers hope will be an annual affair.
Organizer Jake Walter will lead five other runners in the 1,085 miles from Auburn to Atlanta, Ga.
They left 9 a.m. Sunday after receiving a send off from family and community members on the steps of Memorial City Hall.
The runners are Dion Brown, Andrew Cunningham, Jack Kavanagh, Sean Wilson and Walter. Walter's son, Stephen, will go as an alternate. All donned T-shirts with the phrase “Never Quit” across the front.
The runners each will run a total of 10 miles a day, for a combined total of 50 miles a day.
Most will split their mileage in half, passing the torch twice a day to the next runner.
A van with side banners noting the invitational will follow the runners. They aim to hit to Atlanta in 20 days.
“I don't know, a couple days I might want to run the 10 miles at once. This van... might get a little cramped,” said Wilson, 19.
Wilson was one of the original members of ConQuest, a youth leadership program Brian Bisgrove founded in 1996.
Walter worked with Bisgrove to develop the program that emphasizes community service, leadership and the Catholic faith.
Bisgrove died on Feb. 10, 1998, from a rare sinus cancer.
Walter hopes this relay raises awareness to serve the program, the community and church.
“We will be praying for people the whole way down. We have a list of 400 people and we will gather more names as we'll go down. We'll go to churches and pray everyday,” Walter said.
Jake Bisgrove was excited when Walter first approached him about organizing the annual event in honor of his son.
“My reaction was very simple 'If you could pull it off, it would be great,'” he told Walter.
People crowded around the van writing names of survivors and those lost to cancer on banners. Fittingly, Bisgrove wrote the first name - Brian.
Brian Bisgrove was very energetic and had a great love for youth. He would think the relay would be great - “the bigger the better,” Jake Bisgrove said.
He added that the runners are spreading hope while raising money for cancer charities. They are collecting donations for Golisano Children's Hospital, the Roswell Park Cancer Institute and the American Cancer Society.
Brown, 19, is excited to see Atlanta, for the first time. They will arrive in the city and join the International Friendship Games.
“I'm kind of nervous about the 20 days running but I'm kind of excited too,” Brown said.
Luckily he's going with his best friend since they were 4 years old, Wilson said.
Walter called Wilson in May and told him about the event.
“I want to see if I make it. I've been running all my life,” Wilson said, having trained six days a week.
He's worried about the southern heat, but is confident he and his teammates will arrive tired but having a good time.
“Hopefully, it will be a long line of invitationals,” Walter said.
Staff writer Jessica Soule can be reached at 253-5311, ext 267 or jessica.soule@lee.net
How To Help
People can make donations to the following address:
ConQuest NA, Central New York, 8214 Ashington Drive, Baldwinsville, NY, 13027
1-888-252-2755
www.conquestclubs.org
Organizer Jake Walter will lead five other runners in the 1,085 miles from Auburn to Atlanta, Ga.
They left 9 a.m. Sunday after receiving a send off from family and community members on the steps of Memorial City Hall.
The runners are Dion Brown, Andrew Cunningham, Jack Kavanagh, Sean Wilson and Walter. Walter's son, Stephen, will go as an alternate. All donned T-shirts with the phrase “Never Quit” across the front.
The runners each will run a total of 10 miles a day, for a combined total of 50 miles a day.
Most will split their mileage in half, passing the torch twice a day to the next runner.
A van with side banners noting the invitational will follow the runners. They aim to hit to Atlanta in 20 days.
“I don't know, a couple days I might want to run the 10 miles at once. This van... might get a little cramped,” said Wilson, 19.
Wilson was one of the original members of ConQuest, a youth leadership program Brian Bisgrove founded in 1996.
Walter worked with Bisgrove to develop the program that emphasizes community service, leadership and the Catholic faith.
Bisgrove died on Feb. 10, 1998, from a rare sinus cancer.
Walter hopes this relay raises awareness to serve the program, the community and church.
“We will be praying for people the whole way down. We have a list of 400 people and we will gather more names as we'll go down. We'll go to churches and pray everyday,” Walter said.
Jake Bisgrove was excited when Walter first approached him about organizing the annual event in honor of his son.
“My reaction was very simple 'If you could pull it off, it would be great,'” he told Walter.
People crowded around the van writing names of survivors and those lost to cancer on banners. Fittingly, Bisgrove wrote the first name - Brian.
Brian Bisgrove was very energetic and had a great love for youth. He would think the relay would be great - “the bigger the better,” Jake Bisgrove said.
He added that the runners are spreading hope while raising money for cancer charities. They are collecting donations for Golisano Children's Hospital, the Roswell Park Cancer Institute and the American Cancer Society.
Brown, 19, is excited to see Atlanta, for the first time. They will arrive in the city and join the International Friendship Games.
“I'm kind of nervous about the 20 days running but I'm kind of excited too,” Brown said.
Luckily he's going with his best friend since they were 4 years old, Wilson said.
Walter called Wilson in May and told him about the event.
“I want to see if I make it. I've been running all my life,” Wilson said, having trained six days a week.
He's worried about the southern heat, but is confident he and his teammates will arrive tired but having a good time.
“Hopefully, it will be a long line of invitationals,” Walter said.
Staff writer Jessica Soule can be reached at 253-5311, ext 267 or jessica.soule@lee.net
How To Help
People can make donations to the following address:
ConQuest NA, Central New York, 8214 Ashington Drive, Baldwinsville, NY, 13027
1-888-252-2755
www.conquestclubs.org
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