Partners In Health Engage at Ohio State is holding a virtual walk-a-thon from April 5-10. Credit: Courtesy of Aya Cannon
Starting Monday, students can walk, run, bike or swim to support maternal health care abroad with Partners In Health Engage at Ohio State.
The organization, which is the community organizing branch of global health organization Partners In Health, is hosting its annual 5K walk-a-thon, Strides in Solidarity, Monday through Saturday — this year, entirely virtually. Participants can adjust distances and do not need to live on or near campus, according to the sign-up form.
Aya Cannon, fundraising team co-leader, said there is a $5 donation as a sign-up fee.
“Strides In Solidarity is something that Partners In Health Engage chapters usually do every year, it’s kind of like an annual thing in the late spring and it’s supposed to be an in-person, big, organized 5K event,” Cannon, a third-year in environmental public health, said. “We can’t really do it this year, but we still wanted to do some fun, big event for fundraising.”
Proceeds from the event go to the establishment of the Maternal Center of Excellence in Sierra Leone to provide maternal and child health care. Sierra Leone has one of the highest rates of maternal mortality in the world, with 1,120 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2017, according to UNICEF.
Partners In Health is a global nonprofit organization aiming to bring health care and resources to underserved communities and works with those communities to achieve lasting progress, according to the organization’s website.
Partners In Health, in collaboration with Sierra Leone’s Ministry of Health and Build Health International, plans to start construction of the Maternal Center of Excellence in April, according to the organization’s website. It is slated to begin providing health care services in 2023.
Katie McGreal, fundraising team co-leader, said the event will use the app Strava to track participants’ distances. Individuals can join the club by looking up PIH Engage at Ohio State 5K on the app.
“There will be a leaderboard of everyone who joined our Strava team that’ll track it so you can kind of see where you fall,” McGreal, a third-year in biology, said.
In addition to the race, Cannon said the organization will sell T-shirts and stickers online. All proceeds from those sales will benefit the national PIH organization.
McGreal said the organization’s Instagram page will feature pictures sent via direct message from participants during the event.
