Emma Conrad, a junior from Winthrop, ME, will be running over 300 miles in June (24th-30th) as part of the Eastern Trek for Cancer,  bringing cancer awareness and raising money along the way. She has already raised over $800 in the first two weeks of her campaign and has a goal of $2,500 by the end of June. With over $1,500 left to reach the goal, Conrad mentioned she will reach out to businesses back home and tell them what she is doing and she hopefully get sponsored.

“Everyone is affected by cancer in some way so that’s another reason why I am doing it. It is such a prevalent disease,” Conrad said. “My Grandfather recently passed away from prostate cancer and my Great-Grandma passed away from breast cancer. My Aunt had a battle with breast cancer and survived.”

The Eastern Trek for Cancer is a week-long run starting in Portland, ME and ending in New York City. There is one team that consists of twelve to fifteen adults who each need to raise $2,500 before the race. The teams consist of partners who alternate between running and driving the race. The whole race is over 300 miles long and each member will complete around twelve miles a day.

There is a specific route that runners will follow. Along the way they will be doing service projects at various hospitals and Ronald McDonald houses.

The money raised by each runner goes to the Christine B. Foundation founded by Matt Dexter after losing his mom to cancer. The foundation benefits cancer patients of all ages.

The training for the race is like training for a half marathon. Team members each get a training plan and have various miles to run a week. The miles vary from fifteen a week to thirty. Training begins in March of 2018 and lasts fifteen weeks, although Conrad mentioned she is starting to prepare now.

“I did cross country skiing competitively since 7th grade and track and field since 6th grade. I really like running and I have a lot of experience running long distances. Last summer I did a half marathon relay with my dad,” Conrad said.

Conrad learned of the race from the community service emails the university sends out. Students from the university have previously ran and alumni Lillian Mitsakos will be running it again with Conrad.

On campus, Conrad is the vice president of Club Field Hockey, a member of Phi Sigma Sigma, in the honors program, and works as a peer career advisor. Every October during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Club Field Hockey hosts Play For The Cure, a tournament where other university field hockey teams help raise money for the American Cancer Association.

“I really enjoy Play For The Cure, it’s my favorite event we do and it definitely made me excited to participate in another cancer-related fundraiser,” Conrad said.

Those who wish to donate can do so here.