On Sunday 650-plus registered walkers and runners on team Progin’s Players will be crossing the finish line in support of Ian Progin, local high school guidance counselor and basketball coach, who is battling brain cancer.
Progin’s Players has been raising funds for the Progin family by collecting team registration fees, individual donations and business sponsorships. The team will be participating in the Steeplechase Distance Run which includes a 5K (walk and run) and 25K (run) starting at Amsterdam School in Hillsborough.
Participants registering for the team pay a fee which includes a donation to the Progin family as well as the race registration fee which benefits The Steeplechase Cancer Center at Somerset Medical Center.
In registration fees alone, Progin’s Players have raised significant funds for the Progin family as well as more than$12,000 for The Steeplechase Cancer Center. In return for their donation to the Progin family and joining team Progin’s Players, participants received a team shirt, guided training via e-mail and an opportunity to meet and train with other team members on Saturday mornings.
”We are so grateful to Steeplechase Cancer Center for welcoming us toparticipate in this race,” said Courtney Newman, team organizer. “By participating in an already established race we could focus on providing a program which would allow us to train all levels of walkers and runners while guiding them in becoming individual fundraisers for the Progin family. Finding a local, family-oriented race that allowed us to help others in the community affected by cancer was ideal.”
While Ms. Newman and her husband, Mike, have participated and coached many teams like Progin’s Players, they are still overwhelmed by the volume of support the community has provided.
”We, as a team, had big hopes for the potential of the team, but we never dreamed we would have over 650 participants,” Ms. Newman said.
”Local businesses have really stepped up to show their support,” said Heather Grande, Progin family member and co-organizer. “Ian has really touched the lives of so many in town, that each donation was accompanied with a personal story of why they wanted to help such a wonderful guy!”
Following Sunday’s race the team is also throwing a team a party in Hillsborough to celebrate its accomplishments! The price of the ticket includes food, a photo booth picture and music. The team expects 400 to 600 people to attend this event.
Hillsborough resident Ian Progin, husband of Courtney (Sinclair) Progin and father of Jeffery, 2, and Payton, 5, was diagnosed with Stage 4 glioblastoma in early May. Mr. Progin is a guidance counselor and head boys’ basketball coach at Hillsborough High School. He is a Rutgers graduate and former RU basketball player.
Family and friends started Progin’s Players to raise funds for the family to help with medical bills and travel expenses for treatments.
”There wasn’t anything we could do for the Progins other than to mitigate the cost of the cancer diagnosis and allow Ian to focus on his wife, children and healing,” Ms. Newman said.
Anyone in donating to the Progin family or to Steeplechase Cancer Center, can visit the websites www.infaspire.com/proginsplayers or www.steeplchasecancercenter.com.
