By Madeleine Thompson

Last Saturday, around 50 students, alumni and community members ran a 5k at the Brown Family Environmental Center (BFEC) in support of Zeta Alpha Pis second annual fundraiser for Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) research. The event was held in memory of Anna Frutiger 09, a Zeta who died in 2010 of a pulmonary embolism caused by an undiagnosed DVT created taking a form of birth control that has since been recalled. The sorority has been fundraising for the organization Stop the Clot for several years in Frutigers honor, but members started the 5k run last year.

We began choosing to fundraise for Stop the Clot because we want to spread awareness of the risk factors [and] symptoms related to DVT in the hopes of preventing what happened to Anna from happening to someone else, said Andie Asimes 13, who organized the fundraiser along with fellow Zeta Franny Alston 15.

Putting the 5k together involved coordinating with a representative from Stop the Clot. Emily Heithaus, coordinator for lifetime fitness and physical education, and her husband Dave, facility manager at the BFEC, also donated their time to help organize.

The Zetas set their fundraising goal higher than they have in the past, at $5,000, and though they did not reach that number, Asimes remains proud of the $3,500 they did raise. [DVT] is not as common or well-known as other causes that organizations on our campus fundraise for, Asimes said. We hope that by spreading Annas story we remind students to stay tuned-in to their bodies and seek help for symptoms that seem out of the ordinary. Alston said the event was very successful and has high hopes for the next DVT fundraiser. Donations to Stop the Clot can still be made at www.firstgiving.com/nbca/stop-the-clot-5k-in-memory-of-anna-frutiger.

[starbox id=”mthompson724″]