New Orleans Mardi Gras Marathon Charities

	The 45th Annual New Orleans Mardi Gras Marathon Marathon, Half-Marathon, 5K Sunday, February 1, 2009 Presented by the New Orleans Track Club
Copyright © 2008 by the New Orleans Track Club. All rights reserved. Page last updated 27 October 2008 17:11 EDT
Home Registration Course Lodging Training Run For a Cause Expo and Packet Pickup Volunteers 2008 Results FAQ's Contact Us	Charities - Running for a Cause As personally rewarding as it is to complete a marathon or half-marathon, many runners put in the long hours and many miles of training to accomplish a greater goal. These participants are running for a cause. If you are running the New Orleans Mardi Gras Marathon or Half-Marathon to support a charity and would like your cause spotlighted here, let us know about it. This year our featured charity is Children's Hospital of New Orleans. Children's Hospital Children's Hospital is a full-service, 218-bed general pediatric hospital with a medical staff of nearly 400 physicians practicing in more that 40 pediatric specialties. Last year, the hospital recorded more than 153,000 patient visits, with children coming from all 64 parishes in Louisiana, 37 states and four foreign countries. Children's Hospital provides care for children from birth to 21 years and maintains a policy of never turning away a child in need of the care we offer. Children's Hospital will benefit directly through your support of these Marathon-related events: The Mardi Gras Marathon The Merrill Lynch Run for the Children The Kids Marathon The Kids Training Program For more information, logon to www.chnola.org or call (504) 896-9375. Alzheimer's Association Run for the Memory Run for the Memory began over six years ago when a few individuals approached the Alzheimer's Association Massachusetts/New Hampshire Chapter with the goal of completing the Boston Marathon while raising funds to support programs and services of the Association. Since then the Run for the Memory has grown from a single marathon endeavor to a strong program with successful teams for the Boston, New York and Chicago Marathons. This will be the first year that the Run for the Memory program will be involved with the Mardi Gras Marathon in New Orleans, LA to benefit the Louisiana Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association. Since the program began, teams collectively have raised over $750,000. As important, each time our team members wears their Alzheimer's uniform, they help to raise awareness of the importance of this terrible disease. Run or Walk to Fight Pancreatic Cancer! Train with the Pancreatica Running Team for the New Orleans Mardi Gras Marathon on February 1, 2009. Your fundraising efforts will benefit the Lorenzen Cancer Foundation, a non-profit organization whose mission is to raise awareness, increase education, and support research aimed at fighting pancreatic cancer. For more information call 1-877-647-0400 or email runners@pancreatica.org. Individual Fundraisers My charity is Homes for our Troops. In brief, HFOT builds and or remodels homes for our disabled soldiers coming home from the war. Each home is tailored to the soldier's disability to assist him/her with comfortable accessible surroundings at absolutely no cost to the veteran. I encourage interested citizens to visit the website and get involved in some way, shape, or form. You may also donate time and services (everything from demolition, to mortgage, legal services). Think of it this way... they have provided us the freedom for Mike Cambre and other race directors to hold events like this. If it wasn't for these courageous men and women we would not be running except running for cover. I'm going to be a bit daring here and not set a monetary goal. All donations support the cause, no matter what the size! If you would like to make a donation, please contact me at stephen.e.wheat@gmail.com or make a direct donation. Thank you and remember no matter what you're doing, the Road goes on Forever... - Stephen Wheat, Colorado Springs, CO I have set a goal to raise $10,000 for the Bo Alvarez Children's Foundation, a charity dedicated to promoting water safety and providing support to children with special needs. Bo Alvarez was two years old when he sustained severe brain damage as a result of a near-drowning accident, and today he cannot walk, talk, or even eat without assistance. I have pledged my marathon to support his family's dedication to Bo and his needs, and their hard work to eliminate similar tragic, preventable events. Drowning remains the second leading cause of injury-related death among children ages 1 to 14. For survivors and their families, the consequences of near-drowning can be devastating. Please consider joining me in this effort. Email me at running@runningforbo.com. - Vincent Roes, Anchorage, AK I am running for two different fundraisers to benefit Trinity Lutheran Church and School in Hicksville, NY. The fundraisers benefit the Middle School Sports Programs and the Church's New Orleans Mission Trip. Our church group is doing rebuilding in New Orleans the week following the marathon. We're staying at Camp Restore. It's my third marathon and my fifth NOLA Mission trip. Looking forward to a GREAT time! - Doris Gargan, West Babylon, NY

Charities - Running for a Cause

As personally rewarding as it is to complete a marathon or half-marathon, many runners put in the long hours and many miles of training to accomplish a greater goal. These participants are running for a cause. If you are running the New Orleans Mardi Gras Marathon or Half-Marathon to support a charity and would like your cause spotlighted here, let us know about it.

This year our featured charity is Children's Hospital of New Orleans.

Children's Hospital

Children's Hospital is a full-service, 218-bed general pediatric hospital with a medical staff of nearly 400 physicians practicing in more that 40 pediatric specialties. Last year, the hospital recorded more than 153,000 patient visits, with children coming from all 64 parishes in Louisiana, 37 states and four foreign countries. Children's Hospital provides care for children from birth to 21 years and maintains a policy of never turning away a child in need of the care we offer.

Children's Hospital will benefit directly through your support of these Marathon-related events:

The Mardi Gras Marathon
The Merrill Lynch Run for the Children
The Kids Marathon
The Kids Training Program

For more information, logon to www.chnola.org or call (504) 896-9375.

Alzheimer's Association Run for the Memory

Run for the Memory began over six years ago when a few individuals approached the Alzheimer's Association Massachusetts/New Hampshire Chapter with the goal of completing the Boston Marathon while raising funds to support programs and services of the Association. Since then the Run for the Memory has grown from a single marathon endeavor to a strong program with successful teams for the Boston, New York and Chicago Marathons. This will be the first year that the Run for the Memory program will be involved with the Mardi Gras Marathon in New Orleans, LA to benefit the Louisiana Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association.

Since the program began, teams collectively have raised over $750,000. As important, each time our team members wears their Alzheimer's uniform, they help to raise awareness of the importance of this terrible disease.

Run or Walk to Fight Pancreatic Cancer!

Train with the Pancreatica Running Team for the New Orleans Mardi Gras Marathon on February 1, 2009. Your fundraising efforts will benefit the Lorenzen Cancer Foundation, a non-profit organization whose mission is to raise awareness, increase education, and support research aimed at fighting pancreatic cancer. For more information call 1-877-647-0400 or email runners@pancreatica.org.

Individual Fundraisers

My charity is Homes for our Troops. In brief, HFOT builds and or remodels homes for our disabled soldiers coming home from the war. Each home is tailored to the soldier's disability to assist him/her with comfortable accessible surroundings at absolutely no cost to the veteran. I encourage interested citizens to visit the website and get involved in some way, shape, or form. You may also donate time and services (everything from demolition, to mortgage, legal services). Think of it this way... they have provided us the freedom for Mike Cambre and other race directors to hold events like this. If it wasn't for these courageous men and women we would not be running except running for cover. I'm going to be a bit daring here and not set a monetary goal. All donations support the cause, no matter what the size! If you would like to make a donation, please contact me at stephen.e.wheat@gmail.com or make a direct donation. Thank you and remember no matter what you're doing, the Road goes on Forever...

- Stephen Wheat, Colorado Springs, CO

I have set a goal to raise $10,000 for the Bo Alvarez Children's Foundation, a charity dedicated to promoting water safety and providing support to children with special needs. Bo Alvarez was two years old when he sustained severe brain damage as a result of a near-drowning accident, and today he cannot walk, talk, or even eat without assistance. I have pledged my marathon to support his family's dedication to Bo and his needs, and their hard work to eliminate similar tragic, preventable events. Drowning remains the second leading cause of injury-related death among children ages 1 to 14. For survivors and their families, the consequences of near-drowning can be devastating. Please consider joining me in this effort. Email me at running@runningforbo.com.

- Vincent Roes, Anchorage, AK

I am running for two different fundraisers to benefit Trinity Lutheran Church and School in Hicksville, NY. The fundraisers benefit the Middle School Sports Programs and the Church's New Orleans Mission Trip. Our church group is doing rebuilding in New Orleans the week following the marathon. We're staying at Camp Restore. It's my third marathon and my fifth NOLA Mission trip. Looking forward to a GREAT time!

- Doris Gargan, West Babylon, NY