http://www.alzheimers-illinois.org/enewsletter/december2012/kick_for_cures.asp
It was a day of kicking and punching, but no one got hurt.
In fact several were helped during Kick for Cures. The annual event of the Illinois Shotokan Karate Booster Club raises tens of thousands of dollars for several nonprofits, including $6,000 for the Alzheimer’s Association, Greater Illinois Chapter.
Held in August, the event calls upon members of the karate organization, which serves 75 park districts for students, age 4 to adult, in park district and community center programs throughout metropolitan Chicago, to collect sponsorship donations and gather together for an hour of kicking and other martial arts techniques. More than 500 people of all ages participated in this year’s Kick for Cures.
Phil Hampel is the president of the Illinois Shotokan Booster Club — a nonprofit corporation that supports karate and the activities of the Illinois Shotokan Karate Clubs.
“Kick for Cures started out in the mid-80s to support a girl who had a brain tumor. She needed an experimental surgery and if the family did it, they would lose their home, so we raised money to keep them in their home,” he said. “After that, the event was for internal scholarship purposes and then in the 90s, it was a Kick Against Cancer and benefitted a few cancer organizations but we realized our community was affected by more than just cancer and so we expanded it to include several other causes.”
Organizations include Susan G. Komen for the Cure and the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, among others.
“We look for charities that are reputable and we want to make sure the money is going to research,” Hampel said.
The Alzheimer’s Association thanks the club for its generous donation!
Read more >> http://www.alzheimers-illinois.org/enewsletter/december2012/kick_for_cures.asp
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