A Bethesda Mom’s Fundraiser Tallies $565K in its Five-Year History

Hundreds of Bethesda-area kids swam, biked and ran a three-mile course at Landon School Sunday in an effort to raise money to support families of children with cancer at Georgetown University Hospital.

The Just Tryan It Foundation fundraiser formed five years ago and is held every Father’s Day in honor of leukemia survivor Ryan Darby. His mother, Molly, created the fundraiser when she and other local moms noticed families with children suffering from cancer struggling to deal with life’s everyday needs.

Proceeds from the event go to help families in the hospital’s pediatric cancer unit who do not have the money to cover day-to-day expenses like rent, gas and other fundamental necessities for basic, everyday living.

“508 raced this year, a record turnout,” said Just Tryan It spokesman Will McKinnon. The event pulled in $165,000 this year, bringing the foundation’s lifetime total to about $565,000.

“The kids really pushed themselves this year,” McKinnon remarked of the record fundraising achievement, adding that the child who raised the most this year tallied $6,000 for the fundraiser.

McKinnon said the participating children raise money to earn prizes, but the real prize is in learning about raising money toward a goal.

“We want to teach the kids about philanthropy,” he said. “That’s what’s most important.”

According to the nonprofit foundation’s website, Ryan Darby was diagnosed with leukemia at age 6 in December 2009 and has been in remission since 2013. About 90 percent of families dealing with childhood cancers at the Georgetown University Hospital receive funding from the Just Tryan It Foundation, McKinnon said.

Check out some of the top tweets from the event using the hashtag "#justtryanit" above: