For 18 years, a group has gathered to support breast cancer survivors in the Cedar Rapids area, and each year, the Especially for You Race grows. Sunday’s edition reached a new high, exceeding 10,000 participants in the one-K and five-K runs. This woman had her own theory as to why the numbers continue to rise.
"It’s tradition for a lot of people in our community and unfortunately, I think more families are affected by breast cancer, so it brings out more people every year." Each person had a reason for being there. Allix Davis was walking on behalf of her mother, Deb, who died two years ago from breast cancer.
Davis says, "I think she would be really happy to see everybody out here supporting those with cancer." It’s not just women who walk. Andrew Tower says he’s on the walk for his co-workers. Tower says, "I work at McKinley Middle School and we’ve had some teachers in the past that have had breast cancer so we do it in memory of them every year."
The event brought in nearly $249,000, which is $7,000 more than last year. The Especially For You Race started after a worker at the General Mills plant in Cedar Rapids died from breast cancer. Since then, General Mills has teamed up with Mercy Medical Center to help women detect breast cancer as early as possible.