Three-time MLB All- star, World Champion and New York Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo will hold his 12th Annual Walk-off for Cancer at Pine Trails Park in Parkland on Sunday, Dec. 3. This event will benefit Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital and the University of Miami Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center as it will provide direct grants for families that are in need of help.
Participants can sign up on the Rizzo Walk website beforehand, or in person the day of the walk. signing up beforehand will make the process go smoother.
Registration will begin at 7:30 a.m., and the race will start at 9 a.m. Each person that registers will receive an event t-shirt, drawstring bag and a hat that states “Dream Big.”
At the event coffee, bagels, donuts and refreshments will be given to all event attendees. There will also be a raffle to earn baseball related items signed by Rizzo.
The Kid Zone will return which features inflatables, balloon artists, face painters and I9 sports with different activities.
Rizzo’s charity has consistently raised millions of dollars annually. The walks of the past two years have seen record numbers of participation and a growing popularity of the event. In 2022, 1,000 people attended the 5k walk along 200 virtual walkers as well.
For those who do not want to actually go outside or those who are not near the Parkland area can participate virtually on the website. People choose to participate online because they would like to participate in the good cause, but enjoy doing it all in the comfort of their own home.
Along with Rizzo and his foundation, the walk is run and organized by volunteers from across the Parkland community, including members of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School’s current varsity and junior varsity baseball teams.
Annually, Parkland residents and people from across the United States come together for the cancer walk. Those who are across the U.S. can participate at this event online and donate money to the charity.
Anthony Rizzo was raised in the Parkland area and attended high school at MSD.When he was at Msd,the alumni was an all-state basemen for the MSD baseball team.
At the age of 18, doctors detected that Rizzo had Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, which is a type of cancer that affects the lymphatic system, which is part of the body’s germ-fighting immune system. He had to go through six months of chemotherapy, which was complicated for him and his parents.
After being told that he no longer had cancer and could return back to his normal lifestyle, he decided that he wanted to also help those who are always battling cancer. This led him to create The Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation.
This foundation allows children who are suffering a sickness to be able to have a second chance at life. People are encouraged to attend this event because they know that the donations are being used for a good cause and it is a reliable foundation that can improve a child’s life.
