Color Run Raising Money For Rett Syndrome Research
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- The Color Run Company calls it event "The Happiest 5K in the World."
Though the company makes a profit, it has also helped charities raise millions of dollars. Next stop: Saturday morning in Pittsburgh.
The Color Run kicks off on the North Side, in a parking lot near the Hyatt Place Hotel. All along the route, volunteers will douse the runners in multi-colored corn starch.
Runners and volunteers will raise funds for research on a devastating disorder called Rett syndrome.
Jenn Langzettel coaches the women's rowing team at Duquesne University. For her, the Color Run is personal. Jenn's daughter, 5-year-old Kaley, has a severe form of the disorder.
"Rett syndrome is a genetic mutation that affects the neurological system," Jenn says. "It makes it difficult for her to walk, use her motor skills properly, her hands."
Because of a vision problem, Kaley attends the Western Pennsylvania School for the Blind. But it's Rett syndrome that keeps her in a wheelchair.
"We're hoping that through the research that's being funded through fundraisers that they'll start, hopefully, to come up with a cure for Rett syndrome," Kaley's mother says. "And they're already on track to do that in Kaley's lifetime. So that's exciting."
You May Also Be Interested In These Latest News Stories
Join The Conversation On The KDKA Facebook Page
Stay Up To Date, Follow KDKA On Twitter