jacksonville-related stories
Florida news anchor and 2-time breast cancer survivor Donna Hicken founds marathon to help fight the disease
Womens Health, Diet & Weight Loss, Motivation
When Jacksonville, Fla news anchor Donna Hicken was diagnosed with breast cancer, she decided she wasn't just going to fight the disease by and for herself, choosing instead to both battle cancer and raise money for a cure. Now, after surviving two occurrences of the disease, Hicken has organized America's first marathon that is solely dedicated to fighting breast cancer.
Hicken, who relates the battle to deal with and beat cancer to running a marathon, has founded The Donna Hicken Foundation, which aims to help under-served women in the Jacksonville area who have been diagnosed with breast cancer deal with everything from financial needs to psychological ones.
26.2 with Donna The National Marathon to Fight Breast Cancer takes place for the first time on February 17, 2008 at Jacksonville Beach. Activities at the weekend-long event include a marathon, a half-marathon, a kid's marathon, a pasta dinner, a concert and a health expo. 100% of the monies raised will go to the Donna Hicken Foundation, which has pledged that the majority of the funds will be donated to the Mayo Clinic's Multidisciplinary Breast Clinic.
Approximately 200,000 women in the United States are diagnosed with breast cancer every year. If you would like to be one of the thousands helping to find a cure, visit the website for 26.2 with Donna The National Marathon to Fight Breast Cancer and find out more about running in the event as well as being a volunteer.
Small town "gets lost" and sheds 10,000 pounds
Diet & Weight Loss, Celebs & Entertainment
2006 was a productive year for the citizens of Jackson, Alabama. Back in January of last year several of the town's citizens came together and started a widespread weight-loss campaign called "Get lost in Jackson" geared towards helping the town become healthier. The original goal was for 2,006 total pounds lost by the end of the year -- but they passed that mark in the first month! One member of the town even referred to the phenomenon as a "tsunami that overtook us." By the end of last month the "pound count" had reached 10,000.
It sounds like a cool idea, offering monthly prizes and all kinds of education and support. And are they finished now that they've hit such a remarkable milestone? Nope, many of the residents are already going for the 2007 round.
