Third annual Sheppard Pratt Stride surpasses fundraising goals, fights stigma
Despite rain in the forecast, over 650 people came out to participate in year three of the Sheppard Pratt Stride, Sheppard Pratt Health System’s community walk and 5K benefiting the health system’s patients and students on Saturday, October 8. The event exceeded expectations, surpassing last year’s $50,000 to fundraise over $70,000, which will go to support the many Sheppard Pratt Health System programs that help patients and students, their families, and those affected by serious mental illness.
“We are so pleased with the level of support we’ve seen for this year’s event. Beyond providing much needed funding for therapeutic activities and programming that helps to enrich the lives of our patients and students, this event—held at the end of Mental Illness Awareness Week this year—helps to fight the negative stigma surrounding mental illness and shows that we, as a community, care about our neighbors’ wellbeing,” said Marguerite Kelley, vice president of philanthropy.
This year’s event introduced a new, annual 5K run in addition to a one-mile family-friendly walk complete with music, bounce house, carnival games, an illusionist and more, presented by Sodexo. In total, over 1,090 miles were logged by Stride participants.
To see photos from the 2016 event, click here. To learn more about plans for the fourth-annual Stride event, click here.
About Sheppard Pratt
Sheppard Pratt is the largest private, nonprofit provider of mental health, substance use, developmental disability, special education, and social services in the country. A nationwide resource, Sheppard Pratt provides services across a comprehensive continuum of care, spanning both hospital- and community-based resources. Since its founding in 1853, Sheppard Pratt has been innovating the field through research, best practice implementation, and a focus on improving the quality of mental health care on a global level. Sheppard Pratt has been consistently recognized as a top national psychiatric hospital by U.S. News & World Report for more than 30 years.