PRESS RELEASE

Team of 51 Runners Represented Azalea Charities in Marine Corps Marathon and 10K

Arlington, VA – Team Azalea Charities fielded 51 runners in the October 26 Marine Corps Marathon and 10K race as part of the Marine Corps Marathon Charity Partnership program.

“Team Azalea Charities Run for Wounded Soldiers” set a goal to raise $225,000 for Aid for Wounded Warriors, a non-profit project that provides comfort and relief items for soldiers, sailors, airman and marines who have become sick or wounded during service in Iraq or Afghanistan. This is the third year that Azalea Charities has fielded a team for the Marathon and this year for a 10K run as well.

Members of the Azalea team from 12 states across the country and the District of Columbia have raised support from individuals, small businesses and corporate sponsors. The largest sponsorship comes from Prince Leopold d’Arenberg of Europe, who has pledged $5,000 for the run. Prince d’Arenberg has been a supporter of the Azalea Charities Aid for Wounded Warriors program since 2005.  His interest and support for the efforts of Azalea Charities stems from the liberation by an American lieutenant of his mother and her sisters from a Nazi death camp in 1945.

Col. Norm Albert, USAF (Ret) headed the Marathon and 10K team efforts on behalf of Azalea Charities and stated, "Everyone seemed to be very pleased with their runs, and raved about the course, the great crowds in Rosslyn, Arlington, Georgetown, the Mall in D.C., and Crystal City, as well as the hospitality of so many Marines and other volunteers supporting the race.  It was also a spectacular day for the weather!"

Last year Team Azalea Charities raised nearly $70,000 from the Marathon. Funds for the purchase of needed comfort items were disbursed through the American Red Cross to Military Medical Centers, through volunteer services programs to the VA Medical Centers and to Fisher House rehabilitation facilities. In addition, Azalea Charities provided financial support to CrisisLink in Arlington, Virginia, for the U.S. Army's Wounded Soldier and Family Hotline (1-800-984-8523), which opened on March 19, 2008.

Azalea Charities Chairman Frank Lasch has announced a goal of $500,000 for its Aid for Wounded Warrior programs in FY 2008-2009. Contributions may be made online at www.azaleacharities.org.

About Azalea Charities

Azalea Charities is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in Prince William County, Virginia, which supports community charities across Northern Virginia. The organization is staffed entirely by volunteers who donate their time, talent and money.  Azalea Charities raises funds for Aid for Wounded Warriors and its community charities through membership fees, private donations and sponsorship of special events such as the Marine Corps Marathon and the Azalea Classic Pro-Am Invitational Golf Classic, the organization’s keystone event held each May. Beyond minimal expenses, all the funds they raise go to their charitable core causes.

The largest recipient of funding from Azalea Charities this past year was Aid for Wounded Warriors, which received $168,000. Azalea Charities awarded $42,000 to community charities from Alexandria to Fredericksburg, Virginia, and is distributing an additional $50,000 to its core charities this fall.

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For more information, contact:
Frank Lasch, Chairman, Azalea Charities, Inc.
azaleacharities@aol.co