Second Lily 5K raises $8,600 for sister of ATO Vice President

Belmont students and community members lined up in the cold October weather Saturday morning for the second Lily 5K Fun Run — raising more than $8,600.

The money raised will go to Alpha Tau Omega Vice President Joe LaMartina’s four-year-old sister Lily, who is currently in treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

The event started in the fall of 2016 — after Lily was diagnosed with her illness in the summer — and raised $4,600.

The event was even bigger this year, with more than 60 runners participating to raise money for Lily.

“It’s just really important to have these kind of events to show the love we have for each other and for the community,” said ATO member and Lily 5K chair Bailey Gill. “We’re doing events around the community that help spread awareness of philanthropy, but this event really shows the love we have for each other, because we’re helping out a brother.”

Lily — who was too sick to travel to Belmont for last year’s run — got to meet some of her biggest fans for the first time Saturday. She and her parents and sister stood at the start of the race with pom-poms — in ATO’s signature azure and gold — and a handmade sign.

After everyone finished the run, the ATO members gathered on the steps of the Curb Event Center to perform one last honor for the family — a ceremony making Lily an ATO sweetheart.

“When I was their age, I don’t know that I thought about other people that much,” said Lily’s mother Anne LaMartina. “I think it says a lot about their character.”

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Photo courtesy of Alpha Tau Omega.