3/30/12

SLU Students, AAUW Sponsor 'Run For Congo Women' April 14

CANTON - The second annual Run For Congo Women will take place on Saturday April 14, at the Partridge Fitness 5K Trail in Canton, beginning at 10 a.m. The run is sponsored by the Women's Resource Center at St. Lawrence University and the St. Lawrence County American Association of University Women.

Run For Congo Women developed from the organization Women For Women International (WFWI). Following years of war in the Congo, women continue to suffer. Gang rape, mutilation and torture were used as weapons of war during the fighting, and remain a threat to women today.

WFWI works to help women survivors of war return to active citizenship. They have aided over 31,000 women in the Congo with financial assistance, job-skills training, rights-awareness education, trauma counseling and small-business assistance. Run For Congo Women has become global and has raised over a million dollars for the WFWI Congolese branch.

More than 100 runners participated in the inaugural Canton event last year, with a total of almost $3,000 raised. Runners may register in advance, for $10, in the Sullivan Student Center at St. Lawrence weekdays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Race-day registration will also be available. In addition, donations may be made online securely.