Charity puts hopes in race

With their neon green capes, it will be hard for spectators at the OC Marathon to miss members of the CureDuchenne Crusaders, who will take to the streets of Newport Beach and Costa Mesa today to raise awareness for a terminal genetic disease that strikes young boys and has no cure.

“These boys aren’t old enough to speak out about their disease, so we have to speak for them, and we try to be obnoxious as we can with our neon green capes,” said Newport Beach resident Debra Miller, who founded CureDuchenne with her husband, Paul Miller, after their son was diagnosed with the disease in 2002.

CureDuchenne is one of several Newport-Mesa-based charities that will benefit from this year’s OC Marathon.

Other local nonprofits participating in this year’s races include Girls Inc., the John Wayne Cancer Foundation and the Boys and Girls Club of the Harbor Area.

In its first four years, the OC Marathon has generated almost $2 million for local charitable causes.

“The OC Marathon is really near and dear to our hearts, because this is where CureDuchenne was born,” said Miller, who will run in Sunday’s 5K event at the marathon.

Duchenne muscular dystrophy causes a loss of muscle mass in the young boys it affects.

Most boys diagnosed with the disease lose the ability to walk before they enter their teenage years and many don’t live to graduate from high school.

CureDuchenne raises money to fund medical research to find new treatments for the disease.

Miller estimated CureDuchenne will have about 75 runners participating in OC Marathon events. The group hopes to raise $50,000 from this year’s races.

The Costa Mesa-based nonprofit Girls Inc., which offers activities to improve self esteem and boost grades for young girls in Orange County, will participate in the OC Marathon for the first time this year.

The charity has recruited a team of 21 girls ranging in age from 8 to 12 to participate in OC Marathon races, as well as 25 adults, mostly staff members and members of the board of directors for the charity.

The group has raised $13,000 so far for the race, and hopes to raise as much as $15,000 from OC Marathon events, Orleda Roa said, director of volunteer services for Girls Inc.

“The girls have been training vigorously over the past three months and they’re really excited,” Roa said.

The marathon is a perfect tie in to Girls Inc.’s programs aimed at improving the fitness, nutrition and health of young girls, Roa said.

“For the girls that are participating, it gives them the opportunity to see fitness play out to their advantage and be a part of something spectacular,” she said.

To pledge money to CureDuchenne, Girls Inc., or other local charities participating in the OC Marathon, visit www.ocmarathon.com/ charities.php.

Reporter BRIANNA BAILEY may be reached at (714) 966-4625 or at brianna.bailey@latimes.com.