Soccer Holds Childhood Cancer Awareness Event
September 22, 2009 | Soccer
Sept. 22, 2009
GREENVILLE, N.C. – September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and members of the East Carolina soccer team will join the fight against the disease by wearing and auctioning off pink jerseys Friday, Sept. 25, during their Conference USA opener against Rice. The contest and silent auction begin at 4 p.m. All proceeds will benefit the Riley’s Army charity of Greenville.
Riley’s Army, founded in April of 2007, supports nine-year-old Greenville resident Riley Philpot, her family and others in the area with children battling cancer. The charity recruits and trains volunteers to sit with pediatric cancer patients and their siblings, as well as provide meals and financial, logistical, spiritual and other types of support.
At age six, Riley was diagnosed with a Wilms’ tumor on her right kidney. A Wilms’ tumor is the most common malignant tumor of the kidneys in children. After what appeared to be a successful operation and removal of the tumor, the cancer returned and several spots on her lungs were found.
She endured another round of procedures and treatments and appeared to be on her way to a full recovery and remission until the cancer returned again. Riley continues her battle with cancer today. She loves soccer and attends Pirate matches whenever she is able.
During Friday’s game, ECU’s players, coaches and team trainer Andrew Pickett will wear pink jerseys that will be up for auction. Fans can place their bids at a table set up next to the bleachers at Bunting Field. Bidding will start at $20 per jersey and increase in increments of $5. Bidding will end with five minutes remaining in the second half.
Volunteers from Riley’s Army will determine the winning bid for each jersey. Winners must pay with either cash or check immediately after the match, at which time each player, coach or trainer will present the winner with his or her jersey.
During the contest, representatives from Riley's Army will be on hand to offer information on childhood cancer. Across America, 12,500 children are diagnosed each year with cancer and one in 330 will contract some form of cancer before age 20. In North Carolina, about 150 children east of Raleigh are diagnosed with cancer each year.
