LifeGift’s Houston 2nd Chance Run: Offers Hope to Texans Waiting for Life-Saving Transplants
September 9, 2024Local Family Honors Pamela Mennie Who Offered Hope and Life to Others
LifeGift’s 2nd Chance Run (5K/1mile walk or run) honors organ, eye and tissue donors in 109 Texas counties in North, Southeast and West Texas. The Houston 2nd Chance Run will take place on Saturday, September 14th, at 7:00 a.m. at MacGregor Park, situated along Brays Bayou. LifeGift invites you to spend a morning celebrating the gift of life. The 2nd Chance Run is a timed event; you can run or walk 1 mile or 3.1 miles (5k) at MacGregor Park or participate virtually! For more information and to register, please click here.
All registered participants in the 2nd Chance Run will receive a custom event t-shirt, medal, race bib and a timing chip (for 5k participants only), along with a race swag bag and entry to our race village. LifeGift will promote the event on social media, sharing photos and messages of support for donor families, transplant recipients and other members of our community. Additionally, the largest family and hospital teams will be awarded the largest team trophy.
Some exciting things in store this year – an all-female Mariachi band, stilt walkers, superhero characters, line-dancing, face painting, an interactive photo booth and so much more! The event is dog friendly.
The Houston 2nd Chance Run is being generously sponsored by Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center, Houston Methodist J.C. Walter Jr. Transplant Center, Enterprise, King & Spalding, Organ Recovery Systems, AIRSPACE, LifeNet Health, The Living Bank, IRONMAN Foundation, SALLOP, Children’s Transplant Initiative, Solvita, Taylor’s Gift, Clayton Sparks Leaves His Mark, Association of Jamaican Nurses of Greater Houston, BUBBL’R, CompassRN, Donate Life Texas, Heart Exchange, HOUSTON RUNNING CO., Nora’s Home, Pre to Post Transplant Foundation, Smilin’ Rylen Foundation and Telemundo Houston.
A year ago, Pamela Mennie passed away after suffering a subarachnoid hemorrhage. Pamela’s husband, Gary Mennie, MD grieved the death of his 54-year-old wife who was a registered donor. “Pamela was always a giver; she was always the person there for everyone,” says Dr. Mennie. “I don’t think there is more noble or loving act that someone can do for anybody, than the gift of donation.”
LifeGift was honored to help facilitate Pamela’s desire to help others in need. She saved the lives of three patients through her selfless donation of her liver and two kidneys, restored sight to two individuals through her cornea donation and healed countless others through her tissue donation. To watch a video to learn more about Pamela and her decision to help save lives through donation, please click here.
“The Houston 2nd Chance Run has symbolized hope for men, women and children who are waiting for life-saving organ, eye and tissue transplants in the greater Houston area,” says Kevin Myer, LifeGift president and CEO. “Each year, we’ve seen many new participants joining our 2nd Chance Run, demonstrating the community’s strong commitment and devotion to raise awareness of the need for organ and tissue donation registration.”
Be sure to join us on our Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram pages as we honor online our donors, recipients and their families as well as educate on the importance of organ and tissue donor registration.
What: LifeGift’s 10th Annual Houston 2nd Chance Run
Who: Transplant recipients, donor family members, healthcare professionals, donation advocates and the entire community are invited to participate
When: Saturday, September 14, 2024 at 7:00 a.m.
Where: MacGregor Park, 5225 Calhoun Rd., Houston, TX 77021
Website: Houston 2nd Chance Run
Dr. Gary Mennie will attend the event and will be available for interviews with the media. For more information and to register, please click here. For onsite media event support, please contact Dagmar Hohnstein at dclimo@lifegift.org, 713.505.6871. There are more than 10,000 Texans in need of organ transplants. Register today to become an organ, eye or tissue donor by visiting DonateLifeTexas.org.