Dear Editor,

On Sunday, August 8, at the Fire Island Hotel in Ocean Bay Park my family and I kicked off the 4th Annual Fire Island 5K Run for Rose. The event is held each year in early August in memory of my mom Rose DiGangi who passed away in 2007 with Glioblastoma, a malignant brain tumor. All proceeds from the event are earmarked for brain tumor research programs of The American Brain Tumor Association.

This year's race was a brand new course which allowed for additional runners by expanding the course into Ocean Beach. Special thanks to the Village of Ocean beach for allowing this to happen. Thanks to all three communities for the perfect coordination which allowed the race to go off without any issues whatsoever. We had over 10 states represented in the field of 394 runners, with a majority of the runners being friendly faces from different Fire Island communities.

It truly is an amazing day and we appreciate all the help from over 70 volunteers that assist us throughout the day. We are very grateful to the OBPFD and Auxiliary, Ocean Beach Police Dept, EMT's for being on call. Thanks also to all of the Fire Island businesses for all the gift certificates. The Fire Island Hotel hosts the event after party, thanks to the Eschmann family.

To date we have raised approximate $200,000 towards research in memory of Mom. I know she is proud of my brother John and I who take the lead on organizing the event each year.

If you haven't had the chance to check out this unique 5K then come out and stay tuned in early August next year. Visit www.fi5k.org or search for Fire Island 5K Run for Rose on Facebook.

Regards,
Anthony DiGangi, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it