PEARCY -- After the death of her daughter, Tiffany McConathy decided to make a change.
McConathy's daughter, Nora, died after a fight with metastatic brain cancer in February. McConathy created Princess Nora's Warrior Foundation to raise money and awareness for the fight against pediatric cancer.
The foundation started in March and hosted the inaugural Princess Nora's Warrior 5K fundraiser with the start and finish line outside of Lake Hamilton's Wolf Arena Saturday morning.
"We decided to start a nonprofit foundation to honor and to help bring awareness and to start funding research," McConathy said. "As well as assisting families in need of help during these really difficult times in their lives."
Before the start of the race, runners and members of the community gathered inside Wolf Fieldhouse to go around to different booths.
Banners hung the length of the court on both sides of the stands with pictures of young children who were battling or had battled cancer.
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Lake Hamilton ninth-grade advanced science teacher Megan Greeson finished as the first female runner in the race with a time of 23:43.
"I didn't know how much it was going to mean until I got into the gym and started seeing all those posters," Greeson said. "Like I was balling. When I got to the starting line it meant way more than I ever thought it could. I was like those kids look just like mine."
The extra inspiration after seeing all the children who were affected by pediatric cancer drove Greeson forward during her run.
Race organizers also marked the running path with yellow stones that each represented an individual child battling cancer.
"That's my best time ever in a 5K," Greeson said. "I was thinking I would a run 28 or 29, but I ran a 23. Everytime I felt like I was getting tired or getting overheated, it was like there's one more baby I've got to meet. It's like they were spread out over the course and I was running to the next one."
Around 150 runners signed up for the event and most came from around the Hot Springs area. However, some ventured from central Arkansas and even states like Texas, Kansas and Tennessee to come to the event.
The foundation just started planning for the race about three months ago and dashed to get sponsors.
Although the foundation is just six months old, it already impacted the battle against pediatric cancer.
"It's been incredible," McConathy said. "We've been super blessed. The community has really stepped up to help us and to help us sponsor this. We've actually funded a clinical trial since we've started this for the rare cancer that my daughter had. As well as we helped eight families in paying for some bills. We've raised almost $100,000 since March of this year."
The money raised at the 5K will go toward research, helping families with bills and helping the foundation itself increase its reach.
The foundation does not know which clinical trial it wants to fund next but is actively searching for one.
"Unfortunately the government only gives 4% of their funding to children for cancer research," McConathy said. "That's become a huge mission in my life now is to change that."
Although McConathy does not run and laughed that she had no idea why they chose a 5K as a fundraiser, there was meaning behind the actual race.
"I do have several friends that run and like to exercise," she said. "We wanted to be able to do an activity that sometimes these kids with cancers can't do to say, 'Hey, these kids can't do that. Let's do this for them.'"
Christopher Bennett finished as the first male with a time of 20:50. Now 21 years old, Bennett ran in high school and wanted to start running more often to reach the level of fitness he was at in the past.
He heard about Princess Nora's Warrior 5K from a sponsor of the event and decided to run.
"For sure," Bennett said, "it made me run harder for that little girl 100%."
McConathy said she hopes the event doubles or triples in size next year as Princess Nora's Warrior Foundation continues to grow its reach.
"Just know that this isn't rare," McConathy said. "These kids deserve more than 4% to find new treatments."