Nearly 100 complete Burlison Colon Cancer Awareness 5K/10K in Albion
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – Ann More of Buffalo is in the last stretch of the Wayne Burlison Colon Cancer Awareness 5K in Albion on Saturday. She finished in 34:13.
There were 90 participants in the race which included a 10K option for the first time.
There were 25 finishers in the new 10K. Jacob Walsh of Buffalo won the 10K for the males in a time of 42:23, while Madison Vekich of Niagara Falls was the first female in a time of 48:25.
In the 5K, 65 finished the course with Harrison Flanagan of Holley the first male to cross the finish line in time of 20:02, while Julia Rohde of Lockport was the first female with a time of 22:05.
The runners are lined up on Clarendon Road near the driveway for the Albion Town Hall. The course then turned right on East Avenue (Route 31) and went to Mount Albion Cemetery and then back on Route 31 for a finish in the parking lot. For then 10K, the runners basically did a repeat of the course.
The race is named in honor of the late Wayne Burlison, an Albion music teacher who passed away from colon cancer on March 26, 2014. His wife, Lisa, addressed the runners at the starting line.
The annual Wayne A. Burlison Colon Cancer Awareness Run/Walk is a slightly longer 5K. A 5K is 3.1 miles. The Burlison race is 3.17 miles. That distance symbolizes the 3 months and 17 days Burlison lived from when he was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer until his death at age 36 on March 26, 2014.
Some of the proceeds from the race go to Orleans Community Health to help with colorectal screenings and awareness.
Brian Cousins of Corfu crosses the finish line in 35:24. Runners passed through a large inflatable of a colon as they hit the finish line.
Wayne Burlison’s wife Lisa addresses the runners at the start of the race. Lisa is recently married to Tom Wink, who is holding a printout of her remarks. Lisa and Wayne’s son Adam is at right. He completed the 5K.
Lisa and Wayne were married for nearly 15 years. Wayne was a genetic carrier of Lynch syndrome, which most commonly leads to colon cancer but also increases the risk for several other cancers. About 1 in 297 people carry Lynch syndrome, yet around 95% don’t know they have it, Lisa said in her pre-race remarks.
She urged people to get checked for colorectal cancer, and to not ignore any symptoms.
“Wayne lived with deep integrity, strong faith, and quiet perseverance,” his wife said. “He loved Jesus wholeheartedly, as well as his family, music and running. Some of my favorite memories are of him running with worship music in his ears, finding freedom and joy in both faith and movement.”
Tom Hawkins of Williamson completes the race in 37:17
Wolfpack Multisports organized the race and also will be directing the Albion Strawberry Festival 5K/8K on June 13. Click here for more information on that race.
