Medical Students to Host Glow-in-the-Dark 5K Race for Charities

Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC) Class of 2018 medical students will host Light Up the Night, a glow-in-the-dark 5K race at 8 p.m. April 17 at the Texas Tech University campus. The race will begin at the Memorial Circle, University Ave. and Broadway.

Brianna Stroup, Cate Wetzel and Ramona Mittal, first-year medical students, are chairs for the event. Stroup said Light Up the Night is a part of the Lubbock City Lights charity event.

“Last year, the event had almost 300 runners,” Stroup said. “Our hope is to have the Lubbock and surrounding communities come out and participate and have a great time, all for the benefit of five great selected charities.”

Register by April 3 to guarantee a shirt in the correct size. Cost of the event is $20 up to the day of the event. Participants can register the day of the event for $25.

Mittal said Light Up the Night has something for all runners.

“This event is for all runners from the most experienced to those who want to start,” Mittal said. “Running is a great form of exercise, and running for charity is an even better reason to get involved.”

Light Up The Night proceeds will go to the following charities:

• The Free Clinic is a student-run initiative that offers medical services to the uninsured community of Lubbock, every Wednesday evening from 6 to 9 p.m. Each week, medical students and health care volunteers provide acute medical care, health education and social resource counseling.

• Family Promise is a nonprofit organization committed to helping low-income families achieve lasting independence. The problem of poverty is complex and will not yield to a simple solution or a quick fix. It requires an integrated approach that begins with meeting immediate needs but reaches much further to help people achieve independence and to alleviate the root causes of poverty.
• The Children’s Rainbow Program is held at Lubbock Impact on Wednesday evenings. The goal of the program is to introduce underprivileged children to a variety of healthy foods/nutrition and healthy living in a fun and interactive manner. In doing this, the program hopes that the children will learn to incorporate these foods into their daily diets and begin forming healthy lifelong habits.

• The Center for Super Heroes is developing critically needed services to reduce the long-term effects of adverse childhood experiences, particularly child abuse and neglect. The challenges faced by these children are significant and varied. This project creates an environment of collaboration and creativity to address previously insurmountable obstacles.

• The American Cancer Society provides free support services to cancer patients, health systems and corporations. Some of their patient service provides lodging, including Hope Lodge Lubbock; transportation assistance; support groups; wigs; resource and referral services; Personal Health Manager kits and cancer information free of charge to patients and their families.

For more information or to register for Light Up the Night 5K, visit www.lubbockcitylights.org, https://www.facebook.com/LCLLightupthenight5K or email lubbockcitylights@ttuhsc.edu.