Zumbathon Raises Nearly $2,000 for Heart Health

More than 100 Zumba enthusiasts raised nearly $2,000 to fight heart disease in memory of Jeff Scott Cook in a Zumbathon at Bunten Road Park in Duluth. The check for $1,919 was presented to the American Heart Association May 3.

Participants got a great workout while raising funds at the April 21 event. Zumba instructor Janice Davis Canty organized the Zumbathon because members of her classes wanted to do something to show their support for Cook’s family. His wife Marline Santiago-Cook is a student in Canty’s class.

Lt. Col. (Ret.) Cook passed away from a massive heart attack on Jan. 8, 2012. Cook was a West Point graduate, and he retired from the Army in 2002. At the time of his death, he was working at the Centers for Disease and Control (CDC) in the Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention. Cook was also a doctoral candidate in Health Promotion and Behavior at the University of Georgia in Athens.

His memorial page can be viewed at http://honor.americanheart.org/goto/Jeff_Cook.

Zumbathon sponsors included the American Heart Association, the Centers for Disease Conterol, the Million Hearts campaign, Dr. Leslie Gaskill, Plaque Busters, Walgreen’s, ZFitness Studio, Costco, and others.

Don’t miss any Duluth news. Subscribe to Duluth Patch’s free newsletter, like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.