Rachel's Racers Raise $400K For Brain Tumor Patients In Honor Of 24-Year-Old Potomac Woman

WASHINGTON, DC — More than 3,000 runners took part in the 25th annual Race for Hope D.C. on May 1 to raise funds for the National Brain Tumor Society. This year's 5K walk/run event raised $1,421,665.55 to help support the needs of brain tumor patients and their families.

Every runner or group of runners has a story of why they're participating in the race. They may be a brain cancer survivor or they are supporting a family member or friend who has been diagnosed with a brain tumor.

Rachel's Racers, a team made up of more than 200 people, ran this year's race in memory of Rachel Rabinovitz, a 24-year-old Potomac, Maryland woman who died on Dec. 11, 2021 of glioblastoma. The team raised $184,000, making it the top fundraiser at this year's race.

Rachel was first diagnosed in February 2021. At the time, she was living with her sister in New York and finishing coursework for her master's degree in social work.

"She had had migraines and had a really bad migraine one weekend," said Katherine Savits, Rachel's mother. "She went to the hospital. They gave her some medicine and then the next weekend she had a major seizure."

After a CAT scan of Rachel's brain revealed a mass, doctors performed surgery to install a shunt and take a biopsy. Rachel then returned to Maryland to begin radiation treatment and chemotherapy at Johns Hopkins.

"She came back to Maryland from New York City. Her birthday was in April and she was trying to raise money on her birthday on social media," Savits said.

For years, Rachel had participated in Race for Hope, after the grandfather of one of her friends had died of glioblastoma. So, she posted a fundraiser on her Instagram and Facebook accounts, setting the goal at $1,000.

"It literally went viral," Savits said. "Like within an hour she hit $10,000. It's insane. So, Rachel's Racers was formed."

Throughout the summer, Rachel conducted silent auctions. She and her mother also hosted their own Race for Hope walk at Winston Churchill High School in Potomac. Through their efforts, $250,000 for the National Brain Tumor Society last year.

"Rachel loved to bake and she made sprinkle cookies that everybody loved. We were going to make them into a bake sale in January, but sadly she passed away, so I decided to do it," Savits said. "I actually started my own business called Bake Like Rach. I've already raised $8,000 in the past couple months."

In addition to baking, Savits hosted a March Madness tournament and began selling "#FightLikeRach" bracelets, which many of Rachel's Racers wore on May 1. To date, the group has raised $400,000 for the National Brain Tumor Society.

To honor Rachel's memory and the efforts of her supporters, the organization created the Rachel Rabinovitz Impact Award, which was presented to Matthew Muench on May 1.

"After her diagnosis, Rachel just sort of cared about other people and was really optimistic and upbeat and went about her life thinking she had a long time to live, when, in fact, she didn't have a long time to live," Savits said. "We're just trying to keep her spirit alive by continuing what she started."