University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
Dribble for the Cure to Mark 10 Years on Oct. 15
July 24, 2017 | Men's Basketball, Women's Basketball
LOS ANGELES – Dribble for the Cure will mark a milestone 10th year of fighting pediatric cancer when participants take to the UCLA campus on Sunday, October 15. UCLA basketball head coaches Steve Alford and Cori Close, and their teams, will take part in the festivities with hopes of continuing a tradition of record donation and participation numbers.
Registration is NOW OPEN for Dribble for the Cure and all are challenged to fundraise leading up to the event, which is centered around a dribble drive of approximately one mile through campus. Prizes will be awarded to individuals and teams of 10 or more with the most pledge money turned in by the date of the event. Additionally, each participant will receive a Dribble for the Cure 10th Anniversary t-shirt and other goodies. Proceeds benefit the Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation (PCRF) and the Cancer Research Program at UCLA Mattel Children's Hospital, as they continue to take steps forward in the treatment of pediatric cancer.
"The Dribble for the Cure has given our patients a lifeline of hope toward finding a cure that will reach all children and adolescents with cancer," said Dr. Theodore B. Moore added. "For ten years, through our partnership with the Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation, our researchers and clinicians have been able to make great strides in developing new therapies to treat cancer and to make a difference in the quality of life of our patients."
Sunday's festivities will commence at Drake Stadium at 8:30 a.m., when day-of registration begins and the Dribble for the Cure Festival opens. Dribblers will be welcomed in a ceremony at 10:00 a.m., before beginning their journey with Alford, Close and their players at 10:15 a.m. Finish-line festivities featuring both teams will take place starting at 11:15 a.m.
Former UCLA guard John Vallely, who started for John Wooden's NCAA Championship men's basketball teams in 1969 and 1970, was instrumental in bringing Dribble for the Cure to his alma mater in 2008. The UCLA Athletics Hall of Famer (Class of 2006) and his wife, Karen, lost their daughter, Erin, to pediatric cancer in 1992. She was 12 years old. In 2002, John began his own battle with the disease, as he was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. He is a two-time stem cell/bone marrow transplant survivor.
"I'm so excited for our 10th annual Dribble for the Cure," Vallely said. "I never could have imagined this event would achieve so much."
Dribble for the Cure raised just over $80,000 in its first year and has seen a steady increase in donations each subsequent year. Last year's total of over $191,000 put the all-time mark at $1,255,350. In all, 6,225 participants have contributed over nine years.
"On this 10th anniversary of the Dribble for the Cure," Dr. Moore began. "We celebrate the many participants, patients, families and friends who come together as a community to help us in this fight!"
For more information, visit dribbleforthecure.com.
