Meadville, Pa. — Sept. 13, 2007 — The Allegheny College chapter of Nothing But Nets — a global grassroots campaign to save lives by preventing malaria, a leading killer of children in Africa — will hold a fund-raiser on Sunday, Sept. 30, during the college's Family Weekend.
The 5K run to fight malaria will begin on campus at 10 a.m., with check-in between 9 and 9:15 a.m. The registration cost, $7 per person, will go directly to Nothing But Nets.
Molly McGravey, a senior at Allegheny, and Sarah Roncolato, pastor of Grace United Methodist Church in Meadville, worked with the United Nations to establish a Nothing But Nets chapter at Allegheny College. They have mobilized campus clubs, sororities, fraternities, sports teams and organizations throughout the region in an effort to raise $25,000 for Nothing But Nets within the next year.
Allegheny College was one of the first colleges in the country to join the Nothing But Nets effort.
The 5K is open to all, regardless of athletic ability. “The 5K is not competitive,” McGravey says, “and the prizes are not based on athletic ability but more on who is having the most fun.”
Nothing But Nets was inspired by Sports Illustrated columnist Rick Reilly, who challenged each of his readers to donate at least $10 for the purchase of an anti-malaria bed net.
Founding campaign partners include the National Basketball Association's NBA Cares, the People of the United Methodist Church, Malaria No More and Sports Illustrated. Other partners include VH-1, AOL Black Voices and Rotarians' Action Group on Malaria.
In addition, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has pledged to match gifts made to Nothing But Nets.
The 5K race is supported in part by a United Nations Foundation grant, which Allegheny's NBN chapter received after McGravey attended a conference in Washington, D.C. this summer.
McGravey and 11 other student activists met with malaria experts; the director of People Speak, a campaign to engage young people on the global issues that will shape their future; and the United Nations Foundation, as well as two U.S. senators. “Of the 12 schools in attendance,” McGravey said, “Allegheny was the leading collegiate contributor to the cause.”
To register for the race, contact McGravey at mcgravm@allegheny.edu. More information on Nothing But Nets can be found at www.nothingbutnets.org.
