When thousands of runners and walkers leave the starting point at the Hope 4 LYFE annual 3K/5K on Saturday, Oct. 24, they will be saving lives. Their efforts will raise money so that uninsured women will have access to lifesaving mammograms free of charge at Community Health of South Florida Inc. (CHI).
Hope 4 LYFE is a 3K/5K walk/run fundraiser started by Palmetto Bay resident Angela Roberts who felt the urge to help others. It began with one of the hardest years of her life in 2000. That is when Roberts watched as stomach cancer ravaged her father’s body and she consoled several friends and relatives diagnosed with breast cancer.
“You hear about it, but until it happens to someone close to you and you watch how cancer deteriorates a body so rapidly, you want to help,” she said.
Roberts woke up from a dream and wrote down the words: hope for life. The words became Hope 4 LYFE that means Live Your Future Everyday.
“Something had been gnawing at me because I couldn’t save my dad since he was too far gone. But, now I do this because I don’t want to feel that guilt of what I could have done, but didn’t,” she said. “When you know better, you do better.”
As an independent business owner who pays for healthcare out of pocket, Roberts wanted to help save lives by taking the worrisome burden off of women who skip healthcare needs because of limited finances.
Roberts’ partnership with CHI has helped to provide mammograms for hundreds of women. The nonprofit health center’s radiology department offers a sliding fee scale for the uninsured. But, Hope 4 LYFE takes away any financial burden standing between some women and a mammogram.
“Women are the caretakers of the family,” said Brodes H. Hartley Jr., president and CEO of CHI. “Some women put their own health on the back burner and give priority to their loved ones. Hope 4 LYFE is a race for those women — to make sure that someone cares for them and gives them access to mammograms.”
To support Hope 4 LYFE, sign up now for the 3K/5K walk/run on Saturday, Oct. 24. Registration starts at 6 a.m., and the race starts at 8 a.m. at the Homestead Air Reserve Base Park, 27401 SW 127 Ave. Adults are $25 each, children are $5 each, and teams of five adults are $100. Sponsorships at the Silver, Bronze and Corporate levels are still available. Don’t wait until race day to register. Call 305- 252-4853 or send email to chievents@chisouthfl.org.
For more information, visit the CHI website at www.chisouthfl.org.
