Looking for a fun way to celebrate Halloween? How about running in costume to help end cervical cancer?
On Saturday, October 29, 2011, the New Jersey Chapter of the National Cervical Cancer Coalition (NJ-NCCC) will host its second annual Halloween 5K to End Cervical Cancer in Montclair. The costume-optional, all ages run/walk will start at 11 a.m. at Just Jakes, 30 Park Street, and pass through Montclair’s residential streets before returning to Just Jakes for a free after-party featuring live music from Midnight Rain.
Last year’s event drew 200-plus registrants. This year’s event, which the NJ-NCCC hopes will draw over 300 participants, volunteers, and spectators this year, is organized to raise awareness about and money for the NJ-NCCC and is presented by Fairfield Racquet Club, Brookdale Shoprite, Ned Stevens Gutter Cleaning, JAG Physical Therapy and the Firefighter´s Mutual Benevolent Association, Montclair – Local 20, and law firm LeClairRyan. The NJ-NCCC was founded by Cristina Lucchetti Ryan, Bloomfield resident, in June 2009 in memory of her best friend, Cary Anne Cowan, a mother and life-long New Jersey resident who lost her life to cervical cancer in 2007.
Cowan had gone without a routine cervical cancer screening for nearly a decade and was only 36 when she was diagnosed with Stage IVB cervical cancer. The chapter is now lead by Sandy Fischer, Cowan´s sister. Since its founding, the NJ-NCCC has attracted a handful of active members, including race director and Montclair resident Mandy Weis. New members are welcome; for more information, visit here