JACKSON, Miss.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Newk’s Eatery and participants in the Newk’s Cares OCRF Ready. Set. Ride!® Ovarian Cycle fundraiser generated more than $117,500 for the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund (OCRF) in the inaugural year of the Newk’s Cares campaign, a drive committed to raising awareness and financial support for ovarian cancer research. The September 25 event, held in honor of Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month in Newk’s home base of Jackson, Mississippi, raised more than twice its $50,000 goal. The OCRF Ready. Set. Ride! Jackson Ovarian Cycle is the first of what will become an annual Newk’s Cares event in Jackson and other cities throughout Newk’s footprint.
“Thanks to our amazing Presenting Sponsor, Newk’s, OCRF’s Ovarian Cycle Jackson Ready. Set. Ride!® was the most successful first-time ride for OCRF,” said Audra Moran, CEO of Ovarian Cancer Research Fund, the non-profit dedicated to eradicating ovarian cancer. “The phenomenal success is a testament to the dedication of Lori and Chris Newcomb and their Newk’s Eatery family to our cause. We are already envisioning the impact the longer-term Newk’s Cares campaign will have in our search for a cure.”
Jackson’s Lori Newcomb, the wife of Newk’s Eatery co-founder and CEO Chris Newcomb, launched the Newk’s Cares campaign in Newk’s restaurants after being diagnosed with stage IIIC ovarian cancer in early 2013. Inspired by her personal journey with the disease and the daunting survival rate—with only 45 percent of women surviving longer than five years after diagnosis—Lori began working to raise awareness about ovarian cancer within the national community. By educating women about early warning signs, promoting research for a cure and sharing her story, Lori hopes to be a source of strength, inspiration and hope in the fight against ovarian cancer.
“In the U.S., ovarian cancer causes more deaths than all other gynecological cancers combined and is the 5th leading cause of cancer death in women,” said Lori Newcomb, Newk’s Cares founder. “There is no effective early screening test for ovarian cancer. Through greater awareness and research, we hope to improve early diagnosis, positively impact the prognosis for women and keep families together.”
