Walgreens to host walkathon, health fair event

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. — The Diabetes Research Institute Foundation on Wednesday announced that the first-ever Walk with Walgreens Family Fun Day & Health Fair will take place April 10 at 14 locations across Florida.



Additionally, 851 Walgreens stores throughout the state and parts of Georgia and Alabama will be selling "scannables" in the amounts of $1, $5 and $10 that customers can write their names on and help decorate the stores' walls through April to benefit the Diabetes Research Institute.



Each walkathon location will feature a variety of activities and entertainment, like face painting and clowns, plus health booths and information and a chance to win a $500 scholarship. Brochures with registration and pledge forms are located at the checkstand of area stores, and all registrants can add their photo to a special wall in the store, the foundation stated. 

Each person who registers for the walk also will be included in the Nationwide Walk with Walgreens initiative, which is a program aimed at encouraging and inspiring the masses to bring wellness into their life through walking. The walk location with the most registrants will be treated to a performance by American Idol finalist Kevin Covais, who has Type 1 diabetes.



"Corporations take part in walkathons all the time. But for a company to organize an effort of this magnitude, it very well may be unprecedented," stated Robert Pearlman, president and CEO of the Diabetes Research Institute Foundation. "We have one goal at the Diabetes Research Institute: to find a cure for diabetes. We are so thankful to Walgreens for helping us get a little closer to reaching that goal."