ROCKINGHAM — Inspired by a personal experience and a recent presentation at the North Carolina state Beta Club convention, Noah Aiken is looking to help the fight against cancer.
A junior at Richmond Senior High School, Aiken is spearheading the inaugural RSHS Beta Club Kay Yow Family Fun Run and Walk. Set for Saturday, March 28, at 8:30 a.m., the fundraising event will take place at Hinson Lake in Rockingham.
Richmond’s Beta Club motto this year is #DoSomething, and after hearing team members of the Kay Yow Cancer Fund speak at Beta convention earlier this month, Aiken decided he wanted to help raise money to benefit cancer patients and his fellow Beta members.
“When I heard the presentation at Beta convention, I was really inspired to do something to help,” Aiken said. “My dad lost a lung to cancer when I was seven, so this is a soft spot for me.
“Almost everyone you know has been affected by cancer in some way,” he added. “So I thought a fun run hosted by the Beta Club would be a good way to try and help people.”
Working with the Kay Yow Cancer Fund, a non-profit which was founded to fight all types of cancers impacting women, Aiken came up with the idea of a 4-Kay fun run and walk. The play on words will see participants in the event run or walk roughly two and a half laps around Hinson Lake.
The Kay Yow Cancer Fund was founded to support the former Hall of Fame North Carolina State University women’s basketball coach, who publicly battled on-again, off-again breast cancer for 22 years.
Aiken was also one of the 49 Richmond students who took the top spot in the group talent competition at Beta convention. The Raiders’ adaptation from the hit movie Grease qualified the group for the national competition, which will be held in Fort Worth, Texas, this summer.
Aside from helping raise money for the Kay Yow Cancer Fund, the fundraiser can also serve as a “mutual benefit” for the Beta Club.
“We’re hoping to raise at least $3,000,” Aiken said. “At school, we’re trying to raise money for nationals, and if we hit that goal, the Kay Yow Cancer Fund will give back 20 percent for us to use.
“We’d love to hit that threshold to help out both organizations,” he added. “The more, the merrier. The plan is to also have local businesses sponsor the event so we can give out bracelets and t-shirts to the participants.”
To pre-register for the event, interested parties can visit support.kayyow.com/team/285517. Pre-registration, which is $25 per runner or walker, guarantees a bracelet and a t-shirt, as well as water and snacks.
Donations are also being accepted on the website for those wanting to give but not do the run or walk. Day-of registration will also be held on March 28, and the first 100 people to register will get a shirt.
Aiken added that he’s working to have representatives of the Kay Yow Cancer Fund on hand for the event.
For questions regarding the fundraiser, Aiken can be contacted at noahjaiken@gmail.com.
