Congratulations to the Girl Scouts in Troop 2540 for hosting a successful 5K on Sunday, May 5, in the Homestead neighborhood of Centennial. Grace’s Race, a 5K walk/run, was the idea of Girl Scout Grace Petroff who wanted to give back to children with cancer.
In December 2010, Grace noticed a numbness in her right foot a few times a day. She went to Children’s Hospital thinking she had a pinched nerve, but doctors diagnosed Grace with a malignant brain tumor in the motor cortex of her brain. She endured an 8-hour surgery and 30 days of intense radiation and chemotherapy and then two different chemotherapy treatments each week over the next year. The process was tough, but in April 2012 she was declared cancer-free.
She and her mother began planning Grace’s Race a year ago, and members of her Girl Scout troop took up the cause too, helping to plan the details, seeking sponsors, marketing and publicizing the race. The race became their Silver Award project.
All the girls shined as they watched more than 700 participants crowd around the starting line on Sunday. Grace blew the starter horn and all the girls knew they’d achieved something special.
“It feels really good to be helping my friends and the families at Children’s Hospital, especially those who are still in treatment,” Grace said.