US – Minneapolis – Be the Match Cancer Run
As the sun rose over Lake Harriet in the heart of Minneapolis, Minnesota USA, at 5:30am on May 16th, 2015, the first trucks, coordinators, and volunteers arrived to prepare for the annual Be the Match Cancer Run. Be the Match Foundation is dedicated to helping patients with blood cancer. Every 3 minutes someone is diagnosed with a blood cancer such as leukemia and lymphoma, and in 2014 alone Be the Match helped 6,300 patients receive a marrow transplant from a matching donor. This annual run helps to raise the much needed funds that Be the Match uses to help fund medical bills, and find and connect those with matching blood marrow types. In 2014, Be the Match raised over 9 Million Dollars.
The team of 20 RRT volunteers arrived at 5:30am to assist with setting up for the day. From 5:30 to 7:30, the energetic RRT team unloaded supplies from trucks, set up tables, chairs, and tents, hung signs from the tents, and prepared the start and finish line for the race.
RRT then split into four teams to help kick off the event. Some helped with the Tot Trot, a race for the young supporters, while other volunteers helped start the 1K and 5K races. RRT also assisted with grouping all of the runners and getting all participants ready for the races. Team members set up and manned the water stop halfway around the lake, and another at the end of the race.
The 5K run began at 9:00 sharp and a mere 17 minutes later the first runner crossed the finish line! One thousand seven hundred runners took part in this day, and the RRT team all regrouped and met every runner with a glass of water as they crossed the finish line. The last participants crossed the finish line shortly after 10:00am.
Prizes and recognition followed in the market area. RRT offered to assist the coordinators of Be The Match, to clean up and take down the event. They heartily accepted and 40 minutes later over 100 tables, 200 chairs, signs, banners, and barricades were disassembled and ready for the rental companies to pick them up.
As the RRT was leaving the event, many of the event coordinators expressed a very warm thankfulness for their assistance.
Some of the comments from the Be The Match Event Coordinators and Directors.
- “I wanted to send you a personal email to thank you so much for all the work you and your team did on Saturday. You have no idea what a big help you all were. Our staff, volunteers and participants were raving about how kind, professional and fun your team were on Saturday.” Angie Dahl -Director, Be The Match Foundation
- “We are so thankful for RRT! You helped make this year’s Minneapolis Be The Match Walk+Run a success!” Lisa Munson – Volunteer Coordinator, Be The Match Foundation
- “RRT has been fantastic! We want you at every race!” Jenna Squires – Development Coordinator, Be The Match Foundation