Hamptons Marathon Donates $55,000 to South Fork Organizations

The Hamptons Marathon, which takes place in East Hampton each fall, recently donated $55,000 in profits from its October races to local organizations on the South Fork, bringing the amount that the four year old race has donated to $168,000.

Race directors and founders Diane Weinberger, an East Hampton summer resident, and Amanda Moszkowski a Bridgehampton summer resident, recently handed over a check to Southampton Hospital for $25,000, a portion of the amount raised from the 26.2 mile race and the half-marathon. The same amount was given to Project MOST, an after-school program in East Hampton and Springs. Through the addition of a 5K race that was added to the racing event this year, Hamptons Marathon also donated $5,000 to East Hampton Day Care Learning Center. 

"We are very grateful to the Hamptons Marathon for their continued support of Southampton Hospital and our mission to provide the best possible care to the East End," said Robert S. Chaloner, the hospital president and CEO. The hopsital has been a beneficiary for the past three races, receiving a total of $65,000.

"For us, Southampton Hospital was a just a natural," Moszkowski said. "First of all, it's a foot race. We're all about health and wellness, and the hospital wanted to get involved on every level; they help us with the medical staff" on race day.

Weinberger said that by adding the hospital as a beneficiary helped the marathon's charitable work expand its reach beyond East Hampton. "We wanted to be a Hamptons Marathon, not just an East Hampton marathon."

Project MOST has been the beneficiary since the inaugural race in 2007, and has received approximately $98,000 in total.

"We're really proud of that," Moszkowski said. "The part you don't actually get to see is that we partner with Team In Training and the American Cancer Society, and their runners raised $600,000 last year." She doesn't know yet how much those participants raised in the 2010 races.

"People are amazing," she said. "It is so inspiring to see what people do. Running a race is hard enough, but they really decide to go beyond. They run for causes. People really take their running seriously, and they take their causes seriously."

More than 1,700 participants completed the 26.2 mile run, a Boston Marathon qualifier, half-marathon, and 5K race. The course takes runners through Amagansett, Springs, and East Hampton. The fifth annual Hamptons Marathon is set for Sept. 24.