by Samantha Hauff

More than a hundred students, faculty, and community members packed the middle grass lot of Fraternity Court at Presbyterian College on Oct. 14; all anxiously waiting at the start line for the countdown.

“Three, two, one, go!”

Everyone was off to the races for PC sorority Zeta Tau Alpha’s inaugural two-mile Color Run for Breast Cancer Awareness and Education. The event began with speeches from both the vice president director of philanthropy for ZTA, Mackenzie Jackson, and PC president Presbyter Dr. Anita Gustafson. 

“Breast cancer awareness and education is a cause that all of our sisters are passionate about, whether that be having a family member or a friend that has been affected, or having a connection through our organization,” said Jackson. “We share the common purpose of supporting this important cause.” 

She continued, thanking the crowd for their support.

 “Your presence here today shows that you also want to make one in eight, none in eight.”

Statistically, 13 percent of  biological women will develop breast cancer throughout their lives. One of these survivors is PC’s president.

PC president Dr. Anita Gustafson grabs a selfie with members of Zeta Tau Alpha at the sorority’s first Color Run for Breast Cancer Awareness and Education.

“I am a breast cancer survivor,” Gustafson said. “I’ve actually had it twice, which sounds really scary – and it is kind of scary. It was 22 years ago and 11 years ago. So I’ve been cancer-free for 11 years. The  best thing about that is in both cases, I had early detection, really excellent treatment, fabulous doctors, and a wonderful medical team. And so in every case, I had the best care possible.”

Unfortunately, healthcare and cancer treatment as thorough as Gustafson’s is not always accessible and affordable to many people across America. 

Gustafson elaborated on the importance of fundraisers like the color run.

 “What I think this is all about is to make sure that everybody gets the best care possible,” she said. “And we know that healthcare is not accessible to all as it should be. This effort is starting to make a dent in that.”

With her concluding remarks, students, faculty, and community members made their way to the starting line to begin the race. The course trailed from the Fraternity court, in front of Bailey Memorial stadium, and then around east campus. 

Participants ran, jogged, and walked the course with smiling faces as ZTA members coated them with loads of pink-colored powder at different stations throughout the run. 

Some ran the course as fast as possible, looking for a personal record. Others jogged and walked in groups, looking for a sense of comradery. Whichever way the participants chose to complete the course, joyous cheers could be heard for every person crossing the finish line. 

“This race allowed me to run for my great grandma, she beat breast cancer twice,” said first-year student Reagan Riddick. “She gave me a little bit of her strength today.  I felt her running with me and it was great.”

Though the event was filled with so much elation for the community and efforts to raise money for a worthwhile cause, a sense of melancholy lingered for the relatives and friends of the PC community who had suffered or lost their lives to this disease. 

A line of signs with the names of survivors and lost members of the community sat suspended in the air next to the check-in tent as Jackson, organizer of the event, gave her thoughts post-race. 

“My goal as VP was to be able to get the community as well as the campus just more involved

in our philanthropy because of breast cancer, you might not realize it but it affects just so many people,” she said. “And I think it’s good to get the community and the students involved and just run for one cause.” 

Jackson noted the event was a success with the amount of sign-ups being more than a hundred and many local businesses sponsoring the event. Though it is her last year as ZTA’s VP, she hopes her sisters will continue this event in the years to come. 

“I hope we can make the event even bigger from here,” said Jackson. 

The collaboration between the PC community and Zeta Tau Alpha to raise money and awareness during National Breast Cancer Awareness Month exhibits the core of innovative service central to Presbyterian College.