A big green wave overtook Chattanooga’s North Shore and the Riverfront area Wednesday. More than 1,400 McCallie and Girls Preparatory School students and faculty members took a stand together in the fight against cancer and raised nearly $15,000 through the first-ever Mission: Remission.
Student Councils from both schools organized the event and will spread the collected funds to a variety of charitable and research organizations.
“Almost everyone has had a loved one or an acquaintance affected by cancer,” McCallie Headmaster Kirk Walker ’69 said. “The students from both schools are compassionate and community-minded, and this project was successful in both raising funds and generating awareness for cancer.”
As a sign of solidarity and to raise awareness for the cause, the entire GPS student body and McCallie’s Upper School students trekked a 2.7-mile path leading from the GPS lower field toward Coolidge Park, across Walnut Street Bridge, between the two Tennessee Aquarium buildings, up the twisting walkway toward Hunter Art Museum and the Art District, and back across the Bridge before returning to GPS.
The walkers wore Army-fatigue green T-shirts with “GPS-McCallie – Mission: Remission” emblazoned on the front and back. Following the walk, the students assembled on the GPS field and were entertained by several student musical groups.