Dozens of people gathered in downtown Manhattan early Saturday morning for the fourth annual Pink Pink Up the Pace 5K and Honor Walk.
The event, which is put on by Downtown Manhattan Inc., aims to raise money for breast-cancer research.
Many of the people who participated in the race are those who have been directly impacted by breast cancer, such as Brenda Schaffer.
“It’s very important to me because I also had breast cancer about six years ago,” Brenda Schaffer said. “I’m hoping help raise money to support the research to help others.”
Fellow breast-cancer survivor Tanna Thompson says the race provides a good opportunity for her to give back.
“It just allows me to give back to a cause that gave back to me,” Thompson said. “I know that the more research that can be done, the less breast cancer will be out there in the world, so I feel like it’s a great cause.”
There were also participants who were there to help fight a disease that has impacted their loved ones, such as Scott Mall. He says he lost both his mother and former wife to breast cancer as well as a close friend to a different type of cancer.
“It’s something that affects a lot of people,” Mall said. “It definitely affected me and a lot of people around me and so it’s important.”
Runners and walkers were able to celebrate afterward with some pizza on the patio at AJ’s NY Pizzeria.
A portion of the proceeds from the event will go to the Johnson Cancer Research Center at Kansas State University.
