15th Annual Race For Grace

Race For Grace and its beneficiary Foundation are named after Grace Elizabeth Ekis, a precious 5-year-old girl who fought a courageous 13-month battle with a rare cancerous brain tumor called diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG). DIPG is an inoperable tumor of the brainstem for which there is no known cure and there have been no significant advances in treatment options for more than 40 years. Affecting primarily children, it is the rarest and worst of all pediatric brain tumors. Approximately 150 to 200 children are diagnosed with this type of tumor each year and survival time is typically just nine to twelve months from diagnosis. Grace journeyed to Heaven on Valentine’s Day 2008.

The despair over the loss of their child, coupled with frustration over the lack of treatment options, led Tamara and Brian Ekis to form the Foundation named after their daughter. The name, Reflections Of Grace, signifies the effect she had on the lives of those she touched over the course of her short life.

As our mission, Reflections Of Grace is dedicated to:

• Providing financial, emotional, and educational support for children and their families affected by pediatric brain cancer

• Raising awareness of all types of pediatric brain tumors, with a particular focus on diffuse intrinsic pontine gliomas (DIPGs), or Brainstem Gliomas

• Joining with other like-minded organizations in educating, aiding and funding the search for a cure for DIPG and other forms of pediatric brain cancer in the hope of curing all cancers

With your help, this event can be an inspiring success – both in terms of the monetary contributions gathered for the benefit of others and in the sense of community togetherness that we hope to encourage. Thank you for sharing our purpose and passion by donating to this important and deserving cause. Your generous support of and genuine care towards Race For Grace is deeply appreciated.

Reflections Of Grace Foundation is an IRS 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, donations to which are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law.