MASSENA - Sarah Murphy, 17, of Massena, has been named a Hero of the 24th annual Boston Marathon® Jimmy Fund Walk presented by Hyundai.

As a Walk Hero, Murphy will inspire an expected 9,000 walk participants, who will walk up to 26.2 miles along the historic route of the Boston Athletic Association’s Boston Marathon® to raise money for lifesaving adult and pediatric cancer research and patient care at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute through the Jimmy Fund. The Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk, a one-day fundraising event, slated for Sept. 9, aims to raise $7.5 million. Since its 1989 inception, the Walk has raised more than $80 million.

Murphy was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in May 2004 and is being treated at Dana-Farber’s Jimmy Fund Clinic.

The Walk Hero Program matches Dana-Farber patients with Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk teams, providing an inspiring opportunity for walkers to connect with children and adults who are being treated for cancer. Murphy is matched with Team Long’s.

The Walk Heroes often become a part of a large group of people committed to fighting the disease for which they are being treated. Walkers offer friendship and support to the patients and their families.

Walk Heroes, their families, and the teams walking for them, will meet for the first time July 20 at the Hero Match Party at Fenway Park. The event provides an opportunity for all involved to get to know each other, enjoy a meal together, and take in a Boston tradition, a Red Sox game at Fenway.

“Walk Heroes inspire and encourage participants to keep walking and enable them to have a personal connection with the miles they’re logging and dollars they’re raising,” says Ann Beach, director of the Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk.

To register for the 24th annual Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk, support a walker, or to volunteer, visit www.JimmyFundWalk.org or call (866) 531-9255.

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