Contact:
Jason Merrill
314-286-0302
[email protected]
ST. LOUIS - Pedal The Cause, an annual bike challenge with 100 percent of donations directed to cancer research at the Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine and St. Louis Children’s Hospital, today announced the total amount of donations raised through its 2011 Oct. 1 and 2 fundraising event. Pedal the Cause Founder Bill Koman, and Executive Director Jay Indovino presented a check for $1,325,000 to Rich Liekweg, president of Barnes-Jewish Hospital, and Lee Fetter, president of St. Louis Children’s Hospital.
“We are extremely fortunate in St. Louis to have world-class facilities and hospitals for cancer research, and it’s our intent to support their efforts in every way possible,” said Koman. “The 2011 Pedal the Cause event brought together over 10,000 members of the St. Louis community who participated and volunteered in the event to help advance local cancer research and treatment.”
One hundred percent of all donations will stay in St. Louis to fund life-saving cancer research through the Cancer Frontier Fund, an initiative of Barnes-Jewish Foundation that benefits the Siteman Cancer Center and Children’s Discovery Institute at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. Life-saving cancer research projects already underway by Washington University researchers from last year’s Pedal the Cause event include studies involving prostate cancer, breast cancer, melanoma and brain tumors.
Support from St. Louis-based Edward Jones, Pedal’s Presenting Sponsor, and additional corporate sponsors ensures the organization’s work is funded over the next three years. At this time, $2.5 million has been committed from corporate sponsors and private underwriters, leaving $1 million remaining to achieve the three-year funding goal. The sponsorship funding allows Pedal the Cause to distribute 100 percent of donations towards cancer research.
Event registration for the 2012 Pedal The Cause event will begin on March 1, 2012, through the website, www.pedalthecause.org.
About Pedal the Cause
Pedal the Cause, founded in 2009, provides funding for cancer research at the Siteman Cancer Center and St. Louis Children’s Hospital through our annual cycling challenge. It is our hope that research funded by Pedal the Cause will ultimately lead to a cure for cancer. For more information, please visit www.pedalthecause.org. Find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pedalthecause and Twitter @pedalthecause.
About Siteman Cancer Center
The Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine is the only National Cancer Institute Comprehensive Cancer Center in Missouri and within a 240-mile radius of St. Louis. Siteman is also one of only 20 national members of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, an alliance of the world's leading cancer centers dedicated to improving the quality, effectiveness and efficiency of oncology practice so patients can live better lives. For more information, visit http://www.siteman.wustl.edu .
About St. Louis Children’s Hospital
Founded in 1879, St. Louis Children's Hospital is one of the premier children's hospitals in the United States. It serves not just the children of St. Louis, but children across the world. The hospital provides a full range of pediatric services to the St. Louis metropolitan area and a primary service region covering six states. As the pediatric teaching hospital for Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis Children's Hospital offers nationally recognized programs for physician training and research. For more information, visit www.stlouischildrens.org.
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