Circle K will be raising money for tetanus vaccines through an event called ‘The Race to Eliminate,’ which will take place on March 24.

“It’s a disease that is present in third world countries that kills a child every nine seconds,” said Abby Walker, President of Circle K. “The vaccinations are provided for people in the United States, but those in third world countries do not have this privilege.”

It costs $1.80 to provide a mother with three doses of the vaccination which will give her and her children a safe living environment. Kwanzaa International, the organization which houses Circle K, is planning to raise $115 million by 2015.“Circle K is trying to get the community and campus involved with the 5K run or one mile walk,” said Walker. “We want students to be involved and spread awareness to which all funds will go to the Elimination project. Anybody can sign to run or walk and even give a donation.”

Another goal of the project besides raising funds is to raise awareness.

“We want to get the name of the project out there,” said Logan Edigar, Department Chair of Marketing for Circle K. “The amount of money we raise will depend on how many people show up. If we have 200 people show, that could supply 1,900 mothers with the vaccinations which will protect the lives of all their children.”

Getting students and the community involved is important for Circle K. 5K runners from around the area have decided to get involved to help this cause.

Will Walker, committee chair of Circle K, is involved with a group called Friends In Training [FIT].

“We have run multiple 5K’s and enjoy running for a good cause. The Race to Eliminate is something our group is really interested in,” said Walker.

A table will be in the JBK to sign up for the race on March 21. Prizes will be given away for groups who have the most participants and first place finishers.