Race day nears for Especially for You® Race Against Breast Cancer
Race day is near! Registration is still open for the 23rd annual Especially for You® (EFY) Race Against Breast Cancer. To date, more than 13,700 individuals have registered to participate!
This year’s race is Sunday, Oct. 13. Opening ceremonies are at 7:45 a.m. and the race begins at 8 a.m. The starting line is on 10th St. SE just outside the Hall-Perrine Cancer Center.
Individuals can register for the race online through Sunday, Oct. 6 at www.especiallyforyourace.org. After Oct. 6, registration can be completed in-person by going to the Especially for You Race office at Mercy Medical Center. On race day, registration takes place at Mercy’s Hall-Perrine Cancer Center lobby from 7 to 7:30 a.m. For additional information, call the EFY race line at (319) 398-6582.
General Mills and Mercy Medical Center are co-founders of the race, which includes a 5K run, 5K walk or a one-mile family fun walk. Post-race activities, including refreshments and music, will take place on 8th St. between 4th Ave. and 5th Ave. SE, just north of the Mercy campus.
Last year 15,245 people registered for the race to support the Especially for You fund. The fund provides mammography and other breast-care services for women who lack health insurance or financial resources. In 2012, 741 individuals received 1,059 services through the fund.
Survivor Photo
On race day, breast cancer survivors are invited to gather at the Hall-Perrine Cancer Center parking lot, just to the left of the building’s main entrance, at 7:15 a.m. to participate in a group photo which will be taken at 7:30 a.m. sharp.
Parking
Thanks to the generosity of Park Cedar Rapids and NTS, several new parking options are available, free of charge, to race participants this year. For those who would like to avoid the more congested parking areas near the hospital, remote parking with shuttle service is available at several downtown locations. Those include the parking ramps at 3rd & 4th Avenues as well as Lot 44 across 8th Avenue SE from the federal courthouse. The park and shuttle options are available prior to the start of the race between 6:45 and 7:45 a.m. with drop off near the starting line; and after the race between 8:30 and 10 a.m. with shuttle pick up at 7th Street between 4th & 5th Avenues.
For More Information
You’ll find everything you need to prepare for the race online at www.especiallyforyourace.org, including up-to-date race information, registration forms, EFY merchandise and breast cancer resources.
The EFY race and the fund are dedicated to the memory of Sandy Knight, a Whittier resident and General Mills employee who died of breast cancer in July 1991. Knight co-founded Mercy’s Especially for You After Breast Cancer Support Group. Her dream was to establish a race to raise funds for breast cancer awareness and education.
