For thirteen years, LVRR and St. Luke’s University Health Network have had a unique partnership. St. Luke’s is the primary sponsor for the club’s largest race and main fundraiser, the St. Luke’s Half Marathon, 5k, and Youth Run. In return for the support that St. Luke’s provides the club and race, LVRR offers fundraising entries in the final weeks of registration for the half marathon.
Each race registration is $100, the funds are then presented to St. Luke’s to go toward the cost of providing the Mobile Youth Health Centers (MYHC) program, a division of St. Luke’s Community Health. The mobile units provide free medical and dental care to local middle school and high-school students who might otherwise not receive treatment. Through visits made by St. Luke’s HealthStar vans during school hours, thousands of students who do not have a family doctor or insurance are able to receive care that is vital to their health and well-being. In addition to dental exams and sick visits, the program features counseling on a variety of topics including nutrition, smoking cessation, and dating violence. St. Luke’s MYHC is offered to eligible students at select city schools in Allentown and Bethlehem.
This year, 51 race entries were sold at the fundraising level and a check was presented to the President of St. Luke’s Cedar Crest, Bill Moyer by LVRR president Leslie Billowitch, and co-race director for the half marathon, Brian Patterson.