FUND-RAISING FOR KIDS WITH HEART DEFECTS: Run for Gift of Life set

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EVERY step will help a child battling a congenital heart disease (CHD).

With this, the Rotary Club of Cebu is inviting the public to join the “Run for Gift of Life” on May 24 at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino.

Now on its seventh year, the run, organized in partnership with Let It Echo Foundation, aims to generate funds to help families get through with the expensive medical procedure and give children a second chance at life.

In the event’s press launch on Saturday, Feb. 21, organizers pointed out that based on global data, one in every 100 infants is born with a heart defect, while more than four million children under five are living with CHD.

Most of the chidlren diagnosed with CHD have low survival rate for various reasons.

Parents of children with CHD are faced with overwhelming financial burden as surgeries for the condition, especially complex cases, can cost from P500,000 to as much as P1 million.

This is were the noble event comes in.

“It’s not about speed. It’s not about medals. It’s about showing up. It’s about caring enough to move,” said Gift of Life Initiative chair Alfredo Relucio Jr. “Every registration, every step, every peso raised brings a child closer to surgery, closer to healing, and closer to a brighter future. Run with us, believe with us, and be part of something that truly matters.”

Among those who attended the launch was Mary Jane Panayogdog and her two-year-old son Cyrus, who was diagnosed with patent ductus arteriosus (PDA).

Cyrus’ condition required surgery that would have cost the family around P85,000, excluding other medical expenses.

Through funds raised from the Run for Gift of Life and the club’s Gift of Life initiative, Cyrus underwent a successful operation last year at the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center.

In 13 years of the Gift of Life initiative, the Rotary Club of Cebu has helped facilitate 615 heart surgeries for children.

Last year alone, 115 kids underwent operations through the program.

Categories for the upcoming charity footrace include the 21-kilometer half marathon, 10K and 5K runs, with a 5K tandem category for children aged 12 to 17. There will also be so 3K and 1K distances for younger participants.

Interested participants may vist Rotary Club of Cebu’s social media page for registration.(CCM)