Health & Fitness
Pedaling for a Cause: PMC Patriot Place Kids Ride Sponsored by Covidien Draws Nearly 100 Riders; Raises Over $5K for Cancer Research
Patriot Place teamed up with Pan-Massachusetts Challenge and Covidien in Foxborough on Sunday, Aug. 4, to raise funds for cancer research and the treatment of children with cancer at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
Nearly 100 children pedaled around Patriot Place and Gillette Stadium Sunday, Aug. 4, in the second Pan-Massachusetts Challenge Patriot Place Kids Ride sponsored by Covidien to raise funds for cancer research and child treatment at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
The 93 young riders, ages 3-14, helped raise over $5,500 in just two hours – contributing to more than half of this year’s PMC Kids Ride goal of $10,000. Fundraising efforts will continue through Oct. 1.
“This is Covidien’s fifth year sponsoring the PMC Kids Ride, which began as a small event on our campus in Mansfield,” said Teresa Hacunda, Covidien vice president of civic affairs. “This is our second year holding the ride at Patriot Place and it is the best turnout we’ve had yet. We owe that to the volunteers, local communities and businesses that have helped create a bigger and more exciting ride each year. The best part is seeing the kids having fun riding their bikes knowing that they are helping other kids who need them.”
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The unique event featured three routes – tykes and trikes obstacle course, one-mile stadium trek and three-mile challenger - around Patriot Place and Gillette Stadium, none of which lasted more than one hour.
Following the rides, families and friends of the participants enjoyed music, games, snacks and raffles throughout the NRG Plaza of Patriot Place.
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“The PMC Patriot Place Kids Ride was a wonderful community event and we were thrilled to see so many children and families participate,” said Patriot Place General Manager Brian Earley. “We are proud to help provide a fun and rewarding way for children to become part of the PMC mission of funding cancer research to ultimately cure cancer. We want to thank our partners at Covidien and PMC for helping us make this year’s kids ride a memorable and rewarding day for all.”
Said Sue Brogran, co-coordinator of the PMC Sturbridge Start and Patriot Place stop: “It’s just an unbelievable experience. It was a great event. The Kraft family’s commitment to finding a cure for cancer meshes very well with our commitment to finding a cure.”
Sunday’s event was the only PMC Kids Ride held in conjunction with the adult PMC ride, which Patriot Place was again a water stop along the two-day, 190-mile PMC route.
“Being a water stop on PMC weekend is a rewarding and inspirational experience and one that we could not be happier to be part of,” said Earley. “Thank you to PMC and all the riders who stopped at Patriot Place for making us part of the incredible journey to cure cancer.”
Earley extended a special thanks to the Patriots Platelet Pedalers for their efforts on behalf of The Kraft Family Blood Donor Center at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Women’s Hospital to raise funds for Dr. Ken Anderson, the Kraft Family Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, to support his multiple myeloma research and development of novel therapies.
Since 2008, the Patriots Platelet Pedalers team has raised over $4 million for Dr. Anderson’s research.
“It was great to welcome home members of the Patriots Platelet Pedalers team into Patriot Place,” said Brogran. “The energy at Patriot Place was fantastic. Not only is the venue fantastic but the great attitudes of all the people that work at Patriot Place was incredible. I could not have been more energized throughout the day.”
ABOUT PATRIOT PLACE
Patriot Place is a shopping, dining and entertainment destination located adjacent to Gillette Stadium on Route 1 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Patriot Place features large and boutique retailers, 17 casual to high-end restaurants and other nightlife venues. Among Patriot Place’s other highlights are a 14-screen Showcase Cinema De Lux, the award-winning Hall at Patriot Place presented by Raytheon, a Brigham & Women’s/Mass General Health Care Facility, and a four-star Renaissance Hotel & Spa. For more information, visit www.patriot-place.com, follow Patriot Place on Twitter (twitter.com/patriotplace) or like Patriot Place on Facebook (facebook.com/patriotplace).
