(Posted April 12, 2010)

HUNTINGDON, Pa. -- Preschoolers at Juniata College's Early Childhood Education Center will pedal furiously around a track as part of a trike-a-thon to raise money for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital Tuesday, April 13 and Wednesday, April 14 on the Juniata campus.

In addition, the College will hold a Youth Carnival, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, April 11 in the Kennedy Sports and Recreation Center.

This marks the eighth year the Early Childhood Education Center has held the Trike-a-thon.
The children will be riding their tricycles on a course set on the college's outdoor basketball court near Ellis Hall from 11 to 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 to 3 p.m., Tuesday and from 11 to 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday.

The children will ride through a course set up with traffic cones and all riders will wear safety helmets. In case of rain or other inclement weather, the event will be rescheduled on Thursday, April 15 and Friday, April 16.

"We're using the trike-a-thon to raise the children's awareness of traffic safety rules and learning about empathy for others such as children in the hospital with serious diseases," says Sylvia McDowell, co-director of the center.

Members of the community can make donations as the children are riding. Children enrolled at the center also will bring home sponsor forms for friends, relatives and neighbors to sponsor their rides.
The Youth Carnival features a day of fun, games, craft and other activities, including face painting and moon bounce.

All donations received during the trike-a-thon will go to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. The hospital was founded in 1962 in Memphis, Tenn., as a hospital specializing in treatment of catastrophic diseases. All patients accepted for treatment at St. Jude are treated without regard to the family's ability to pay.

Contact April Feagley at feaglea@juniata.edu or (814) 641-3131 for more information.