The spring weather, soccer matches and a good cause highlight the fifth annual “Kicks for a Cure” April 16-17 at Morrison Soccer Stadium.
Since 2006, “Kicks for a Cure” has raised over $556,000 for women’s cancer research, education, prevention and patient care.
The money from the event will be donated to “Liz’s Legacy,”a charitable program focusing on women’s cancer in memory of the late soccer mom Liz Karnes, Creighton University Hereditary Cancer Center and University of Nebraska Medical Center’s Eppley Cancer Center.
A new addition this year is a men’s soccer game on April 16 at 7 p.m. featuring Creighton and the NCAA Division I champion University of Virginia.
Current “Kicks for a Cure” chairs are chairman of pediatrics Dr. Terry Zach and his wife Mary Zach. Their daughter, Claire Zach, is a current player on Creighton’s women’s team and was the first Liz Karnes Memorial Scholarship winner in 2008.
The soccer matches will be fantastic, especially the newly featured men’s game and the rivalry match-up of Creighton against the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, Dr. Zach said. He hopes Creighton students will come support their teams while knowing their donations are being well spent.
A free skills clinic, conducted by Creighton team members and coaches will also be held the afternoon of April 16, for approximately 200 youth from Boys & Girls Club of the Midlands, Girls, Inc., Boys Town, All Our Kids and Campfire Kids.
A fundraising dinner featuring cancer research at Creighton and the University of Nebraska Medical Center will be held the night of April 16 at the Doubletree Hotel Downtown.
The April 17 line-up includes a varsity high school match at 11 a.m. featuring Millard West High School vs. Marian High school and two women’s soccer games. The University of Nebraska at Omaha will face off against Northwest Missouri State at 1:30 p.m., and the Creighton women’s team will play against their rival, UNL, at 4:30 p.m.
All teams participating will raise money for the event. Creighton women are funding a bake sale featuring homemade baked goods. Arts & Sciences freshman Lauren Wong, a defender for the Creighton’s women team, estimates that of April 13, the women’s team had raised almost $250. The Creighton women also donated the leftover money from the past trip to Illinois State to “Kicks for a Cure.”
“We are all stressing out about finals, but I think that everyone can take an hour or two to think about those people fighting for survival and watch soccer for a good cause,” Wong said.
Tickets will be sold at the Morrison Stadium ticket office, and the proceeds will go to “Liz’s Legacy.” The cost is $5 for Creighton students and $8 for adults. The “Kicks for a Cure” sponsor, First National Bank, offers $1 discount coupons at all Omaha-area outlets.