The University’s James H. Warsaw Sports Marketing Center raised more than $34,000 at a 5,000-meter race for Parkinson’s disease research Sunday morning.
The First Annual Jog for Jim 5k is named for the center’s founder, James Warsaw, who was diagnosed with the disease in 1993. About 181 runners, including University students, community members and athletes from the Pacific-10 Conference, participated. The University Bookstore sponsored the run.
In addition to the race, money was raised through individual and family donations and through sponsors such as the Harrington Family Foundation, which contributed $20 for each runner. Local businesses also contributed gifts for prize drawings.
The money will go to Cure Parkinson’s Program, which was co-founded by Warsaw. It was the first year that the program had aligned with the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, graduate teaching fellow Josh Frankel said.
Frankel said previous fundraisers for the program consisted of 3-on-3 basketball tournaments in McArthur Court, which raised $20,000 last year. He said the Warsaw Center is hoping to make the run a yearly event.
“At the end of the day, it’s all about Parkinson’s disease and what we can do to find a cure,” Frankel said.