HILLSBOROUGH: Steps Together enters home stretch in aid year

Letter to the editor

To the editor:
On July 1, Steps Together introduced 12 families in our community who were in need of financial and emotional support as a result of an unexpected medical crisis. Many of these families are in Hillsborough or have strong ties to Hillsborough. We became motivated by the very statement, "How many people does it take to make a difference? One!"
We went into action and again organized a team to participate in the Steeplechase Distance Walk/Run. The event supports the nearby Steeplechase Cancer Center and offers a 2-mile walk, 5K, 10K and sprints for kids on Sunday, Sept. 28, at Amsterdam School in Hillsborough.
We now are less than two weeks out from the event that we have been planning and training for. We are 281 team members strong and we have raised more than $37,000. There is still time for people to join our team. You can sign up at www.steps-together.org/reg-intro. Online registration will close on Tuesday, Sept. 23, at midnight.
All team members of Steps Together receive race registration, guided training via email with training tips and suggested workouts, invitations to attend group training sessions, and fund-raising advice, should they choose to expand their donation network. They also receive a team shirt highlighting team sponsors and participating beneficiaries to wear on race day.
As we come to the home stretch, we are encouraging the community to go "blue" for Steps Together. People can stop by Renaissance Hair Salon and Spa in Hillsborough to get a blue extension in their hair for a $5 donation. (Walk-ins welcome!)
We are also encouraging people to take part in a one-day challenge to pay their blessings forward. Simply adopt a day and ask all your family and friends to support you in a challenge to raise $100 for Steps Together on that day. We will even provide a draft email to those interested in taking part in this challenge.
Together we can buy dinner for a family who is to tired to cook, buy a toy to motivate a child to get through a procedure, cover an insurance co-payment or even help make ends meet for a parent who can no longer work.
Steps Together is truly a village that has come together to make a difference for the 12 families we support. We ask that our community continue to embrace Steps Together with the passion that they have already shown and always remember why it is that we have come together. Prayers, awareness and funds!
You can read the stories of those supported by this event at www.steps-together.org/2014beneficiaries.
Steps Together is a Hillsborough based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. For additional information, please visit www.steps-together.org or contact me at [email protected].
Courtney Newman 
Hillsborough 