Get Up! Get Active! A Weekend Full of Fun Fundraisers in Portland
Exercise is an excellent way to boost your health and stay happy, in shape and ready for action. Though an active lifestyle can benefit individuals in many ways, the exciting events and athletic activities coming up this weekend focus on helping others through fitness.
October’s second weekend brings three fundraiser events that promise to get you on your feet while benefiting those in need. Whether you’re a casual walker or a dedicated runner, you can affect amazing change through your weekend aerobic activities this Saturday and Sunday in the Portland area.
Friends of Jordan 5K and Kids Run
When: Oct. 11, 9 a.m.
Where: Forest Grove High School
This event, in its second year, is a fun and non-competitive five-kilometer race to benefit the families of children suffering from severe combined immunodeficiency. Last year, the event raised $4,500 to help with medical bills for an Oregon infant named Jordan Janeway. This year’s fundraising is for a 22-month-old Salem boy, Dalton Reno, who suffers from the same disease. Participants can register for a 400-meter kids’ run, free with a parent participating in the 5K or $7 without, which begins Saturday morning at 9:45. The main 5K run/walk kicks off at 10 a.m. and will take racers around the streets of Forest Grove, staring and finishing at Forest Grove High School’s outdoor track. Registration is open through the day of the event and is $30 for adults, $20 for children 6–12 and free for kids five and under. You can also make donations to the family at the event or online.
Making Strides Against Breast Cancer 5K
When: Oct. 11, 10 a.m.
Where: Portland International Raceway
The American Cancer Society started their Making Strides Against Breast Cancer events more than 20 years ago. Today, they host more than 300 breast cancer awareness races across the U.S. Portland’s annual noncompetitive five-kilometer fundraising walk/run is set for this Saturday at 10 a.m. at the Portland International Raceway. Participants can sign up online or at the event beginning at 8:30 a.m. and are encouraged to fundraise through donations from friends and family. So far, 137 teams and 726 individuals have pledged over $63,000 for Portland’s 2014 event, with more donations expected to pour in through the day of the race. You can learn more, donate or sign up on the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer website.
Portland Free to Breathe Walk
When: Oct. 12, 9:30 a.m.
Where: Oaks Park
Portland’s inaugural Free to Breathe Walk is a benefit event to raise funds for lung cancer research. Free to Breathe is a national coalition of lung cancer survivors, advocates and healthcare and industry professionals formed in 2001. The group hosts fundraising events across America, and Portland is participating for the first time this year with an event this Sunday in Oaks Park in Sellwood. Racers can choose between one-mile and 5K courses that will take them around the pretty park nestled in Southeast Portland along the Willamette River. Online registration is closed, but individuals and teams can sign up on the day of the event beginning at 8 a.m. The benefit walk costs $25 for adults and $15 for kids 12 and under. Participants are scheduled to gather at 9:30 a.m. for a welcome event and rally before hitting the course at 10 a.m. The event’s closing rally begins an hour later and features entertainment by a local DJ and drawings to announce winners for several event prizes. Teams and individuals are encouraged to fundraise for the event and have already pledged thousands of dollars for lung cancer research. To donate or learn more about the Free to Breathe Walk, visit the coalition’s website or head out to Oaks Park this Sunday.
