Portland walk, 5K highlight brain aneurysm awareness month

PORTLAND, Maine - Lace up your walking and running shoes for the KAT-Walk & Karo-5K for Brain Aneurysm Awareness on Saturday, Sept. 12 on the Back Cove Boulevard in Portland.

This annual event is organized by a group of committed volunteers who seek to remember and honor our loved ones lost to or having survived a brain aneurysm. The goal is to provide support to the brain aneurysm community in Maine and raise public awareness regarding early

detection and treatment of brain aneurysms.

Awareness saves lives!

A brain aneurysm is a weak bulge on the wall of an artery in the brain and can catastrophically rupture. It is estimated that up to 1 in 50 people in the U.S. will develop a brain aneurysm during their lifetime. Due to the lack of awareness and research funding, the situation today is grim. Each year about 30,000 people will suffer a ruptured brain aneurysm. Almost half of the victims will die and of those surviving, only a third will recover without disabilities.

Runners take off at last year's Karo-5K which is run to raise awareness for brain aneurysms, which rupture in about 30,000 Americans each year, killing nearly half and leaving nearly half the rest with devastating disabilities.

The KAT-Walk is in memory of Kimberly A. Tudor, a Deering High School and UNE graduate and athlete, who lost her life to a sudden brain aneurysm in December 2008.

The Karo-5K is in memory of Karolina A. Kurka, a Scarborough High School and UNH graduate who passed away from an undetected brain aneurysm in July 2011.

Now in its 7th year, this annual event has grown to include many more families affected by brain aneurysms and this day is used to honor survivors and remember loved ones lost to this silent killer.

The day starts at 11 a.m. on the pathway across from the Hannaford Plaza with registration, family gatherings, a 50/50 raffle, face painting, Michael T. Goulet Foundation safety helmet giveaway, and "Unka Dave's" Kids Fun Run at noon. The timed Karo-5k run will begin at 1 p.m. with prizes awarded to top runners in multiple age groups. The 2-mile KAT-Walk will follow the run at 1:05 p.m.

Funds raised by the event will benefit local efforts to support early detection, education, fund research and create awareness about brain aneurysms in Maine and northern New England.

Sponsors of the event include: Floyd J. Brown Construction, Geiger, Help Print New England, MMC-Neuroscience Institute, Hammond Lumber, and WEX.

September is Brain Aneurysm Awareness month in Maine. Please join us, as we "share our tears, remember with love, walk & run to honor" Kim, Karo, and many other families affected and help save lives! For more information, please visit: www.MaineBA.org or just click here.