Grateful for the few hours of sunshine to break through a very rainy weekend, hundreds of walkers and runners gathered at the Cross Country Course at the Pingry School in Martinsville, NJ, both to honor the memory of a friend and to raise awareness for a largely unknown medical condition. The occasion was the Second Annual "Walk with Heart," which was sponsored and run by the John Taylor Babbitt Foundation in conjunction with several Pingry seniors. The John Taylor Babbitt Foundation is a local foundation established to commemorate John Taylor Babbitt who died as a result of undiagnosed Hypertrophic Cardiomypathy (HCM) in 2006.

The day consisted of a competitive run which began at 10:30am with the walk starting shortly afterwards. Despite the wet course close to 400 people participated in the fundraiser. While there was a solid family representation, many of the attendees were students from local area high schools including: Chatham, Delbarton, Mt. St. Mary's, Pingry, Villa Walsh, St. Peter's, Oratory, and Seton Hall Prep. Most touching perhaps was the return of many of John's friends who had gone on to college and only recently finished their freshman year. The event became not only a community event, but also a reunion of old friends.

By the time the sky began to cloud over once again and the first drops of rain could be felt, the Walk with Heart had raised about $60,000 through registration fees, raffle sales, and donations. The top male and female finishers were Chris Scavone (11.15) and Monique Hoogenboom (14.46). With such a successful year, plans are already in the works for making next year's Walk with Heart even more fun and successful. For more information about the John Taylor Babbit Foundation and its efforts to raise awareness and prevent sudden death from HCM, you may go to the website (www.jtbfoundation.org) or call (973-701-0920)

Pingry seniors Will Brundage, Jessica Westerman and Henry Burchenal (left to right) selling raffle tickets at the 2nd Annual John Taylor Babbitt Foundation "Walk with Heart".