Chambersburg grad, a cancer survivor, to run across US for charity
Monica Henderson warms up before a run in Chambersburg. Henderson, who just completed her first year as a University of Pittsburgh student, will be participating in a run across the country to raise money for cancer. She is a childhood cancer survivor. (Photo: Markell DeLoatch, Public Opinion)
This past fall, Monica Henderson was scrolling through her Instagram feed when a sponsored post caught her eye.
The ad was an image promoting a program that was tailored to her on numerous levels: The Ulman Cancer Fund’s 4K for Cancer, an event that sends 180 college students on a 49-day, 4000-mile running trek from one side of the country to the other.
This piqued Henderson’s interest on the surface, because she loves to run. Always an athlete, after giving up basketball in high school at Chambersburg, she tried cross-country her senior year and loved it.
But it also called to Henderson because of her own personal experiences with cancer. A childhood survivor herself, and the daughter of a breast cancer survivor as well, the prospect of combining her passion for running with helping out a cause so close was a can’t-miss opportunity.
“It seemed really fun,” Henderson said. “But I thought I wasn’t going to get it anyway.”
But four essays and a couple of interviews later, Henderson was indeed chosen as one of the 180 students for the program, and is heading to San Francisco this week to kick off the 1.5 month journey on June 17.
On the trip, Henderson, who just finished her freshman year at the University of Pittsburgh after graduating from CASHS in 2017, will be part of
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