Zeta Tau Alpha had their 2nd Annual Color me Pink Run on Sunday, Oct. 26, 2014 at 2 p.m. near Second Avenue to help raise money for their philanthropy.
Early registration began at 12:30 p.m. to those who did not have the opportunity to register online. Elizabeth Loftis, the director of Philanthropy said, “As of Tuesday, we have a total of 180 people running, which is a great turnout. We are hoping that more people come out and support our cause.”
ZTA’s philanthropy is breast cancer awareness and education. Shannon Phelan, treasurer of ZTA, said, “Last year we raised over 5,000 dollars, which was great. We’re hoping we’ll raise even more this year, but we won’t know the exact amount for about a couple of weeks.”
All the proceeds raised at the run, along with their Chick-Fil-A spirit night held Tuesday Oct. 21, will benefit their philanthropy.
When it came to organizing and planning the event, President Sarah Wells said, “We started planning after last year’s event. We started pitching ideas and how we wanted to organize the event and then during the beginning of this semester is when we actually [started] organizing it and setting it up.”
All the sisters wore pink tutus that were made by sister Miranda Meadows. “I made a Facebook post asking my sisters if they wanted tutus and to like it if they did,” said Meadows. “I had a bunch of positive responses, so I asked my sisters at chapter who wanted one. The sisters who wanted them ended up giving me $10, and I made over $200 dollars! My grandparents told me they would double it, so in total I raised over $400 dollars, which ended up going to our foundation!”
Speaker Becky Kirwan, the current president of the ZTA Foundation and past national president, opened the race with a few words to the runners, “Think pink, and thank you for coming and supporting our cause.”
She worked with the ZTA chapter at Longwood University as province president back in 1977 and said, “Longwood holds a special place in my heart.” Kim Cave, who is a ZTA alumna, graduated from Longwood in 1980, grew up in Farmville and is now the membership advisor.
The participants in the race ranged from children to elderly, some even had dogs with them to help them run. Each runner had a name on the back of their shirt in remembrance or celebration of their loved ones, friends or co- workers who fought breast cancer.
Senior Jessie Coates ran for her grandmother Juanita Fertig, “My grandmother had the disease and had to take frequent visits to NYC to make sure she was okay. She has a scar and wants some sort of tattoo over it for remembrance of what she conquered. Thankfully, she’s in remission now.”
Another senior, Emily Van Buskirk, ran for Mary Garrison, the woman she nannies for, “She had cancer when she was 32 and is now cancer free for some years now.”
The race began at 2 p.m. with the first runner, Walter Culbertson, finishing the race in 20 minutes. Jason Tsai finished at a close second, and following him was a ZTA sister and senior Kristin Skowron, the first girl to finish the race.
Overall, ZTA had a great turnout for their Color me Pink Run. Over 200 people attended and more donated for the cause and the fight against breast cancer
