PARTICIPANTS ENJOY FESTIVAL-LIKE SETTING AT STAMFORD’S MILL RIVER PARK

Over 4,200 people from as far away as London, England, New England and the Tri-State area walked, ran and rode for Stamford Hospital’s Bennett Cancer Center on Sunday June 3, National Cancer Survivors Day.  Hope in Motion Walk, Run & Ride broke its one-day fundraising event with $700K in donations.  

This year, the annual fundraiser changed its name, merged its October bike ride fundraiser, and moved to Stamford Downtown.  Participants embraced the changes, gathering at Mill River Park in a festival-like setting complete with HaHa clowns, a DJ and live music.  They were joined by Stamford’s Mayor and Honorary Event Chair Dannel Malloy, Lt. Governor Michael Fedele, Miss Connecticut 2006 Heidi Voight, and international artist David Arrigo.

“We are humbled by the community’s generosity and support to the Bennett Cancer Center,” said Event Chair Jeff Gage, senior vice president of Albert B. Ashforth, Inc., the corporate real estate brokerage division of The Ashforth Company. “The money raised through Hope in Motion’s Walk, Run & Ride makes a difference in the lives of local cancer patients and their families.  We thank every participant and volunteer who helped make the event more successful than we could have imagined.”

The Stamford Hospital Foundation continues to receive donations from the event, and expects the final total to surpass $700,000.  Proceeds from the fundraiser support the vital programs and services offered by the Bennett Cancer Center.  To date, the Center has benefited from $6.9 million in donations from the Walk, Run & Ride events.

The day started at 7:30 a.m. with cyclists in Hope in Motion bike jerseys on their 100K trek from Stamford to Darien, Rowayton, New Canaan, Pound Ridge, N.Y. and back.  The 50K Ride participants followed an abbreviated route through Fairfield County at 8:30 a.m.  The routes were mapped and signage provided by The Kneaded Touch in Stamford.

More than 4,000 walkers, including 136 teams, participated in the 5K Walk.  The top-fundraising team receives the honor of leading the Walk.  This year, Friday Girls led the Walk for the second year in a row, surpassing its previous fundraising record with over $37,000 in donations.

Save the Date: Next year’s Hope in Motion for Stamford Hospital’s Bennett Cancer Center Walk, Run & Ride (www.hopeinmotion.org)
is scheduled to take place on Sunday, June 1, 2008.

Hope in Motion for Stamford Hospital’s Bennett Cancer Center WALK, RUN & RIDE is presented by Stamford Hospital Foundation, the fundraising arm of Stamford Hospital. The event’s founding and presenting sponsor is The Ashforth Company, a diversified real estate firm in Stamford.