Waterfront Cebu City Hotel & Casino partners with the Rotary Club of Cebu (RCC) for the fifth edition of “Run for the Gift of Life,” a fundraising fun run for children with congenital heart defects, kicking off this coming June 12, 2024.
The ‘Run for a Gift of Life’ has served as a beacon of hope, raising vital funds for the Gift of Life program that offers life-saving surgical treatments for underprivileged children with congenital heart defects.
Bryan Yves Lasala
Waterfront Cebu City Hotel & Casino General Manager
Congenital Heart Defects (CHD) is said to be one of the five leading causes of infant deaths. While deemed lethal, it is treatable, contrary to popular belief. The “Run for the Gift of Life” fun run aims to financially support families with kids suffering from CHD in hopes of giving them a second lease of life.
“The ‘Run for a Gift of Life’ has served as a beacon of hope, raising vital funds for the Gift of Life program that offers life-saving surgical treatments for underprivileged children with congenital heart defects,” said Waterfront Cebu City Hotel & Casino Resident Manager, Bryan Yves Lasala, during the press conference of the fun run.
Lasala also added that the activity transcends the idea of a simple race as it embodies our collective spirit in supporting a worthy cause and making a difference in the lives of children.
Director of the Rotary Club of Cebu Darwin John Moises also highlighted the fun run’s objective, saying, “We are here for two main reasons: to raise awareness about congenital heart defects, or CHD, and to raise funds because that’s also essential for us to be able to successfully heal little hearts.”
From the previous to recent editions of the run-for-a-cause, over 400 children with CHD have already been treated with the manifestation of aiding 45 to a hundred more through “Run for the Gift of Life,” a purposeful work of RCC.
Categories: Let the race commence
The “Run for the Gift of Life” has two main categories: the open category for all distances, including 21 km and 10 km, and the parent and child tandem category exclusively for the 5 km, 3 km, and 1 km runs.
Everyone is welcome to join, but for those who wish to participate with their child, the parent and child tandem category is the best fit for them: 5 km for those with 12- to 17-year-olds, 3 km for those with 7- to 11-year-olds, and 1 km for those with children that are still 6 years old and below on the day of the event.
All registrants will be granted the following: a race singlet, a race bib, after-race refreshments, and a contribution to save a child with CHD. Only 21 km, 10 km, 5 km tandem, and 5 km individual runners will be awarded a finisher’s medal.
Little hearts saved
RRC’s dedication has already produced meaningful feats for other people; among them are Athena Faith Monsanto and John Mark Gabriel, who were both recently treated for CHD.
Athena was then diagnosed with Tetralogy of Fallot, a combination of four congenital heart defects, but is now fully cured.
“Actually, almost half sa among journey kay ang Rotary ang nitabang apil ang Php 200,000.00 nga surgery cost sa doctor’s fee,” said Marlou Monsanto, the father of Athena.
(Actually, almost half our journey was shouldered by the Rotary Club of Cebu, including the Php 200,000.00 surgery cost for the doctor’s fee.)
Marian Gabriel, the mother of John Mark, who then had CHD, also cited that “Dako jud kaayo’g tabang si Rotary kay wala jud mi nila gi-surrenderan maski kapila na mi gibalibaran og surgeon ug ospital nga dili siya operable tungod sa iyahang case, pero ang Rotary, naa andam nga mutabang.”
(The Rotary Club of Cebu helped us big time because they never surrendered for us, even though some surgeons and hospitals had already refused and said that his case was inoperable, but the Rotary Club of Cebu was always ready to help.)
If you wish to participate, you can register at Media Showroom – Citrineland Corporation, Cellpod in Ayala Center Cebu, Globe Shop in Parkmall, and Cellpod in SM City Cebu, or online at https://bit.ly/RGOL-Y5.
For more information, you may reach out to the official Facebook page of the Rotary Club of Cebu.
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