By Lauren Ludwig 
  
Lee University will host the annual Great Strides Walk and 65 Roses 5k at Great Strides on Saturday, March 28. An event of the Cystic Fibrosis (CF) Foundation, the Walk and 5K raise funds and awareness for CF through participants and sponsors. This year will mark the 25th anniversary of Lee’s hosting of the event, which will be a celebratory finale culminating 25 years of partnership.   
  
“This event will be more than just a walk – it will be a celebration of purpose, perseverance, and progress,” said Vanessa Hammond, vice president for University Relations and parent of an adult child with CF. “We reflect with gratitude on the many lives touched, the faithful steps taken, and the meaningful impact made throughout this journey. Walking hand-in-hand with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation has been an incredible honor, and we are proud of the difference this partnership has made. While this will mark the final Great Strides walk held at Lee University, the mission is far from over.”  
  
The Great Strides event rallies hundreds of community participants and Lee University students yearly to raise money for the CF Foundation. Great Strides is the CF Foundation’s largest national fundraising event, which supports their mission to cure cystic fibrosis, a progressive genetic disease that affects the lungs, pancreas, and other organs. Every year thousands of people unite at nearly 300 walks across the country to support their goal of ending this disease. Last year, the Cleveland event drew over 750 total walkers, runners, and volunteers, and has surpassed $1.4 million raised for CF research since the local event’s founding in 2001.     
  
“Lee University and their volunteer leaders have invested 25 years of energy, resources, and heart into Great Strides, helping shape an event that has made a meaningful difference for families across this region,” said Leigh Ellington, executive director for the Tennessee Chapter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. “We are deeply grateful for their personal and institutional commitment, and we celebrate the strong foundation they’ve created. And while this will be the final walk hosted on campus, it represents only one chapter in an ongoing story. The Cleveland community has consistently risen to meet the needs of people with cystic fibrosis, and this moment invites all of us to step forward even more boldly.” 
  
In honor of Lee’s final year of hosting the Great Strides event, CF grandparents, Jo Beth and Milton Boyer, have offered a $50,000 match for event donations. All Cleveland Great Strides team fundraising will be matched dollar-for-dollar up to $35,000, or when the match is completed, whichever comes first. And new or increased corporate sponsorships in support of Cleveland Great Strides and the 65 Roses 5K at Lee University will be matched dollar-for-dollar up to $15,000, or when the match is completed, whichever comes first. Donations received in excess of the matching goal of $50,000 will be used to support the CF Foundation’s mission.  
 
“The Boyer family’s matching challenge beautifully illustrates how one family can ignite broader impact, and we hope it inspires others to help keep this vital work thriving through 2026 and beyond,” said Ellington.  
  
The route for the 2026 Cleveland Great Strides Walk and 65 Roses 5K run (3.1 miles), directed by Dr. Bill Estes in partnership with Terra Running Company, will begin and end on the Lee campus and travel throughout Cleveland’s historic downtown area. The walk and road race will begin at 9 a.m., and a 1K Fun Run (0.6 miles) will take place at 9:30 a.m. and will begin and end in front of the Paul Conn Student Union.     
 
“Over 4000 Cleveland residents have run the 65 Roses 5K throughout the years,” said Dr. Bill Estes, race director and dean of the Lee University College of Education. “We hope to see each and every one come back for our final lap hosted by Lee University. We are pulling out all the stops to go out on the highest of notes and look forward to hosting runners of all ages and abilities.” 
  
The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation is a nonprofit donor-supported organization dedicated to attacking cystic fibrosis from every angle. Its focus is to support the development of new drugs to fight the disease, improve the quality of life for those with CF, and ultimately find a cure. Research is happening daily to find a cure and develop drugs available to those living with CF.    
  
For more information about the Cleveland Great Strides or 65 Roses 5K, visit leeuniversity.edu/great-strides/ or fundraise.cff.org/leeugs2026.    
  
For sponsorship opportunities, contact Hammond at [email protected].    
  
For more information about how to host an event with the CF Foundation, please contact Ellington at [email protected] or Jolly Johnson at [email protected].   
  
For more information about the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, cff.org/.