The First Annual 5K Matt’s Promise Memory Run in Old Tappan, NJ – April 13th, 2008
This run was in memory of Mike LaViola
More than 300 people came together on Sunday, April 13, 2008, to launch the Matt’s Promise Memory Run in honor of Mike LaViola, an Old Tappan resident who passed away in February 2008 from cancer at the age of 20.
The inaugural event raised more than $40,000 to fund research into synovial sarcoma and other terminal illnesses that affect young people. The event, which was co-chaired by 17-year-old Morgan Procida of Norwood, New Jersey, was held at Stone Point Park in Old Tappan.
“On February 2, I lost a friend, Mike Laviola, who was diagnosed with synovial sarcoma when he was only seventeen,” Procida said. “While battling this cancer for three years, Mike taught the people he knew what strength really meant, and the phrase ‘never, never, never, give up’ will stay with me forever. Mike lived his life to the fullest and made an impact on people’s lives. This has been a true inspiration to me. The Memory Run empowered us to do something positive in Mike’s name.”
Unfortunately, we have all lost someone dear to us and this run was a way that, as a group, we could honor each and every one of them. Our goal was to raise funds to help support the initiatives that Matt’s Promise has identified as cutting-edge, innovative and promising, and we exceeded all of our expectations.
A portion of the funds raised will go to research into synovial sarcoma at Memorial Sloan- Kettering Cancer Center. Major sponsorship came from IBEX Corporation, William Procida Inc., and Hertz Mountain Industries.
At the event, Procida became the first recipient of the Matthew Wiederkehr Leadership Award, which will be given to an outstanding volunteer annually. Procida skillfully united the community to make this event a huge success.
“I was completely surprised and honored to receive this award,” explained Procida. “I wanted to organize the event to help people, like Mike, who suffer from horrible terminal illnesses. I want to do my part to help Matt’s Promise raise funds for important research that can and does make a difference. That is reward enough for me.” Procida is a junior at Old Tappan High School where she is captain of the cross-country team.
In attendance were Mary and Michael LaViola, parents of Mike. “This event was a wonderful way to celebrate my son’s life,” LaViola, a lieutenant in the Alpine Township Police, said. “We all feel cheated that Mike’s life was cut short because he was a beautiful human being and a ray of sunshine to so many people. The Memory Run helped the community and our friends honor him in a significant way.”
We thank our generous sponsors for helping to make this event possible:
Matt’s Promise is a project of The Promise Foundation (EIN: 20-1618720), an organization exempt from federal income tax as a public charity pursuant to an Advance Ruling issued by the Internal Revenue Service dated May 15, 2008. Your contribution is tax deductible, except as may be limited under federal law.
