Team Sanford Burnham Prebys hit the pavement this weekend for Padres Pedal the Cause, an annual fundraising event that invites participants to cycle, spin, run or walk to support local cancer research. The funds raised through each year’s race go to seed grants that fund collaborative cancer research projects in San Diego.
“Padres Pedal the Cause is a chance for the cancer community to come together and remember why collaboration is so important in cancer research,” says bike rider Ze’ev Ronai, PhD, director of the Institute’s NCI-designated Cancer Center. “Virtually all of us know somebody who has been impacted by cancer, including me. This is my fifth Padres Pedal the Cause, and every year I’m so proud to be part of our Institute’s team and help contribute to cancer research outside the lab.”
This year’s team was formidable: 56 employees and friends of the Institute signed up to either ride, run, or walk in the event. Team members came from all areas of the Institute, including faculty, staff scientists, administrative staff, postdocs, and even current and former members of the Institute’s Board of Trustees, such as Bill Gerhart and Steve Williams. Other notable names on this year’s team included longtime participants such as Professor Nicholas Cosford, PhD and James Short, associate director of Digital Communications and Design.
“I’ve been with Padres Pedal the Cause since the very beginning, and it’s one of the highlights of my year,” says Short, who has helped lead the Institute’s team for the last 10 years.
The team also included some new members this year, such as Assistant Professor Lukas Chavez, PhD, and Director of Experimental Pharmacology Raghu Ramachandra, PhD, who both joined the Institute late last year.
While Institute employees were well represented on this year’s team, there were also current some of the team’s top fundraisers had a different reason to join team Sanford Burnham Prebys. Kim McKewon is a longtime donor to the Institute and has been participating in Padres Pedal the Cause since its inception in 2013. This year she raised more than $6,000; and to date, she has raised more than $30,000.
“I pedal for my husband, Ray, who is in remission from leukemia because of science and research, the very focus of the grants that are given from the fundraising that comes out of this event,” she writes in her website bio.
It’s not too late to support Team Sanford Burnham Prebys
To date, team Sanford Burnham Prebys has raised more than $300,000 through Padres Pedal the Cause since its inception in 2013. And while this year’s ride is over, there is always time to support local cancer research. The fundraising deadline for this year’s Padre’s Pedal the Cause is April 18, and 100% of every dollar raised goes toward lifesaving cancer research. Help team Sanford Burnham Prebys create a world without cancer.
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