A local organization’s mission to fund innovative research at the Georgia Cancer Center (GCC) has a deep bench of allies from area businesses.
Registration is underway for PaceDay 2025, set for Sunday, Oct. 5. The annual event is sponsored by Paceline, a nonprofit organization that supports cancer research at GCC.
“The mission at Paceline is simply to bring communities and organizations together around ending cancer,” Martyn Jones, Paceline’s President, told ABD. “Officially, our mission statement is that we’re a movement of communities and organizations setting the pace to end cancer. We fight cancer through innovative funding, innovative cancer research, where 100% of all funds raised through Paceline go directly to innovative cancer research.”
Jones said his organization does not do this alone. It has the backing of numerous major companies, including Coca-Cola, E-Z-Go, and Martin Marietta. It also has an extensive list of business supporters that field teams for the annual event.
“We have teams from Aurubis Richmond, ADP, Plant Vogtle, Georgia Power, Pinnacle, and Queensborough banks, Augusta National Golf Club, an employee’s team from Augusta University, Cranston Engineering, Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, Piedmont McDuffie,” Jones listed.
Jumping in alongside the area’s largest employers are local businesses such as Universal Plumbing, Fleet Feet, and Savannah River Brewing Company, which is bringing back a special beer flavor.
“It’s between them and a local artist, famously people will know him as Porkchop (Leonard Zimmerman), who is responsible for the Happy logo around town, and also happens to have been the originator of the Paceline brand logo,” Jones explained, adding Happy2Help, a strawberry blonde brew, is available at Savannah River Brewing Company on 8th Street and area retail outlets.
While support from the businesses is important for the success of PaceDay, Jones said it is part of a broader economic impact.
To date, Paceline has raised $1.7 million to support cancer research at GCC. Researchers at GCC apply for grants through the partnership to spur local research projects.
The center, in turn, has used that as a platform to apply for funding from national sources, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Those applications have resulted in twelve and a quarter million dollars in grants.
“So, there’s a multiplier effect going on here. We can say that for every dollar that’s fundraised through Paceline has been multiplied seven times over already through successful, prestigious grant wins at the national level,” said Jones. “But the NIH has an actual sum that they use for determining the economic impact of those prestigious awards, and they determine that for every NIH dollar an institution like the Cancer Center wins, there is $2.56 economic impact to the community it serves.”
Jones said that brings the total economic impact on the local community to $30 million, money that benefits the community and area businesses.
Another goal is to raise the profile of GCC in the hope that it will one day be a designated National Cancer Institute (NCI) hospital. Currently, there are 73 NCI-Designated Cancer Centers nationwide.
“It’s a long haul, takes time, takes years, to get there, but Paceline and all it’s doing with support from businesses and community members, and organizations all around the CSRA is helping us and our cancer center to achieve that goal. So, it’s some years out, but it’s critical that we keep on growing and we keep on receiving this support to get there,” Jones said.
Paceline’s signature event has always been the PaceDay bike ride. This year, however, Jones said they wanted to make it more inclusive and accessible to everyone.
“We’ve added a Fun 5k Run-Walk participation type, so now you can walk, run, or ride for cancer research,” he said. “Spin is also another option, an outdoor spin class on Augusta Common, all levels. It’s a full day of events including live music, food, and swag.”
Registration is underway on the Paceline website at www.paceline.org. You can also check the organization’s Facebook page for more information.
