The Mary E. Smith Foundation hosts its 9th annual run and walk Saturday in Country Club Hills as part of an effort to battle brain cancer.
The Brain Tumor Awareness 5K Fun Run/ Walk, held with the City of Country Club Hills, will be at the Community Park walk path, 4200 W. 175th St.
The event will help raise money for the foundation, which helps fund research on brain cancer, assists brain tumor patients and families financially and provides scholarships for college students. Franciscan Health and Ingalls Memorial Hospital are sponsors.
The foundation was created in 2008 in honor of Mary Smith, a Country Club Hills resident who died in 2003 from an undiagnosed brain tumor. Since its incorporation, it has contributed more than $73,000 to the various causes it supports, including research and scholarships. The event is the foundation’s flagship fundraiser and has grown substantially in its nine years. Last year, proceeds from the event funded two of the foundation’s scholarships.
Tiffany Smith-Woodson, Smith’s daughter and the foundation’s president, said the foundation takes pride in its hometown roots and uses the opportunity to spread awareness to the community.
“The event is held in the same city my mom grew up in,” Smith-Woodson said. “This is how we reach out to a multitude of people that otherwise might not know about brain tumors.”
Registration will begin at 8 a.m., with the start of the run at 8:45 a.m. The walk begins at 9 a.m. The cost to register for the run/walk is $35 for individuals and $30 for members of a team of 10 or more participants online, and will be $40 on the morning of the event. The timed run/walk will include prizes and finisher’s medals for participants.
Face painting and games for kids will be available.
Registration is available online at www.maryesmithfoundation.org, and same day registration will be available the morning of the event.