2021 Walk for Hope Breaks Fundraising Record

RALEIGH, N.C., Oct. 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The 33^rd annual Thad and Alice Eure Walk for Hope shattered all previous fundraising records by raising over $600,000 in a single event. The Foundation of Hope for Research and Treatment of Mental Illness hosted the Drive-Thru on Sunday, October 10, 2021, at the Angus Barn restaurant in Raleigh, N.C.

The Walk for Hope, traditionally a 5K walk from the Angus Barn through Umstead State Park and back, pivoted in September to a Drive-Thru event for safety reasons stemming from the widespread hospitalizations of children due to the Delta variant of COVID-19. Traditionally, a family festival of giveaways and activities follows the walk, so the drive-thru allowed participants to enjoy those activities from the safety of their car.

For the second consecutive year, participants enjoyed a safe, family-friendly car parade experience that looped the Angus Barn property where they were served delicious Angus Barn burgers and good luck apples from Van Eure, treated to live music, and won prizes throughout the day. Participants decorated their cars with signage to honor loved ones and shared reasons for confronting mental illness. Giveaways included samples from Pepsi Bottling Co., cookies from Kookie Krumbs, a chance to win Delta Air Lines tickets, and goody bags for children and adults filled with items donated by sponsors of the event. Mental health-related information signs dotted the route, and researchers from UNC-Chapel Hill Department of Psychiatry members were onsite at the UNC Health booth.

The support from the community was fantastic, as cars were lined up on Glenwood Avenue awaiting their turn to enter the Drive-Thru.

Raleigh restauranteurs Thad Jr. and Alice Eure established the Foundation of Hope in 1984 after their son was diagnosed with chronic bipolar disorder. In 1989, after Thad's passing, his employees established the first Walk for Hope in his memory; approximately 200 participants raised $30,000 for the Foundation. Today, the Walk has become a Triangle family tradition, and one of the nation's largest and oldest walk fundraisers benefiting mental illness research.

One hundred percent of the funds raised support mental illness research grants at the UNC-Chapel Hill Department of Psychiatry. Since its inception, the Foundation has raised over $6.9 million for 164 research grants, which have leveraged an additional $191 million in funding from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and other organizations.

For more information, visit www.walkforhope.com.

SOURCE The Foundation of Hope for Research and Treatment of Mental Illness