If you’re on Lake Wylie this weekend, expect to see about 180 swimmers in the chilly water. The swimmers will take part in an event that aims to support those battling cancer.
Swimmers will swim up to 2 miles in the lake as part of the ninth annual Swim Across America. Patty Waldron is one of the organizers behind the event, which aims to raise funds for cancer research and treatment.
“You’ll fuel life-saving research and better protocols for patients, you feel good,” Waldron said. "You feel like you're contributing to the answer. I really think that’s what gravitas people to participate.”
Funds raised by this weekend's event will support efforts at Atrium Health Levine Cancer and Levine Children’s Hospital. Swim Across America event occurs across the country in places like Denver and San Francisco. Funds raised by the events support local groups' efforts to conduct cancer research and provide medicine to those affected.
Drennan Shall, 15, is a Paralympic swimmer and two-time cancer survivor who attends Providence Day School in south Charlotte. Shall plans to swim 2 miles at Sunday's event.
“I just hope that everybody who's battling cancer, who has battled cancer, knows that there are people out there who support them, whether it's through the doctors, nurses, staff at the actual hospital, their families, their friends, but also complete strangers whom they've never met,” Shall said.
Since its start in 1987, Swim Across America has raised more than $100 million to support efforts for cancer treatment and research, with one million dollars being raised locally. Sunday morning’s events start at 10:30 a.m. at Camp Thunderbird at Lake Wylie.
