5-year-old raises funds to cure cancer
Scripps Ranch resident Owen Presnall, age 5, recently raised more than $5,000 for cancer research. He started a team called O-wen We Cure Cancer to support Curebound’s Padres Pedal the Cause fundraising event that took place March 18 at Petco Park.
Owen, a T-K student attending Miramar Ranch Elementary School, started fundraising in January, taking photos with signs to send to family and friends to recruit support. He became a Cure Creator top fundraiser by raising $2,500 in February, and was rewarded with bubbles and M&Ms from the Padres Pedal the Cause team. Then, days before the event, he reached Yellow Jersey top fundraiser status: $5,000. He is only the second child to do so for this fundraiser.
The event occurred in mid-March with more than 3,000 participants raising $2.5 million and counting. Owen participated in the 5k walk along the Embarcadero and then participated in the kids challenge where he ran along the bases on the field at Petco Park with the Friar and Spiderman.
During this process, Owen’s parents explained to Owen how many people in their life cancer had touched, according to his mother, Heather Dean-Presnall. But since he is a five-year old, he ultimately told people he was fundraising to help sick people.
In total, Owen’s team raised more than $5,449, all of which will be directed to funding cancer research in San Diego.
Learn more about this mission to make San Diego the cancer curing city at Curebound.org.