Get Out, Get Fit for a Good Cause

Erica's Run organizer Lisa Spinney, Erica's mom, said Friday afternoon that they are looking forward to Saturday's fundraising road race and hoping to bring in even more money than ever to help local families dealing with cancer.

This is the fourth year of Erica's Run a charity road race that starts and ends at Merrimack High School and raises money to be donated to families in the community who have mounting medical bills and expenses due to a cancer diagnosis.
In the first three years of the event, Erica's Run has brought in more than $30,000 and every dollar of the proceeds goes to helping those families in need, Spinney said. The entire crew of people who help at the event do it on a purely volunteer basis, to pass along the most money. Last year, the event climbed to 430 participants and raised about $15,000 – twice as much as the first two years combined.

Spinney said there are about 250 people registered for Saturday morning's run, and they are hoping for a good day-of turnout from people who waited to register to see what the weather forecast is. They hope to hit the 500-runner/walker mark. The weather on Saturday morning is expected to be partly cloudy and about 60 degrees when the race begins.

Erica's Run was started in memory of Erica Pombrio, a Merrimack resident who was diagnosed with lipo-sarcoma in 2008 when she was 22 years old. She fought hard for a year against the disease before losing her battle at 23 years old on Sept. 19, 2009.

According to her story on the Erica's Run website,

"Erica continued to write in her journals throughout her life and during her courageous battle with cancer. These journals bring comfort to her mom and sisters because of the wonderful memories that they contain. One of her final wishes was that she could do something to ease the pain and suffering of others dealing with cancer, especially the children.

ERICA'S 5K RUN is an annual event to honor our angel, Erica Nicole Pombrio, and celebrate her life and the lives of ALL of our loved ones lost to cancer. With each step we take, we hope to help ease the pain and suffering by donating all proceeds of the race to one or more local community families affected by cancer as well as letting them know that they are not alone in their fight!"

Join Erica's Run and help make a wish from her final year of life come true. All proceeds from the race will go to the Erica Pombrio Foundation. In addition to the 5k, there is a kids 1k fun run and raffles, including a raffle for two iPads and a Red Sox tickets raffle.

The kids fun run is $15 to enter and kicks off at 9 a.m. The 5k is $25 and will start at 9:30 a.m. Download and fill out an entry form before you get to the race, or fill one out there.