VIDEO/PHOTOS: Race for the Cure draws thousands to downtown Little Rock, North Little Rock

Participants in the 23rd annual Komen Race for the Cure cross the Main Street bridge between Little Rock and North Little Rock Saturday morning.
Participants in the 23rd annual Komen Race for the Cure cross the Main Street bridge between Little Rock and North Little Rock Saturday morning.

Judith Horsey's reason for walking in the Komen Race for the Cure each year in Little Rock is simple.

"Because I am still living," the 70-year-old breast cancer survivor said shortly before Saturday's event, the 23rd in the Arkansas affiliate's history.

Horsey, a Little Rock resident who has been free of the disease for six years, has taken part in every Little Rock Race for the Cure since she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She said she likes to support the effort to find a cure while also giving hope to those still battling the disease and finding inspiration herself from those who have survived longer than her.

[GALLERY: Photos from Saturday's Race for the Cure]

She noted that she had talked at the race with women free of the cancer for 14 and 15 years.

"We just reminisce on how long it's been," Horsey said. "I can see they're enthusiastic about it. So that gives me hope."

On Saturday, Horsey was one of thousands of women who dressed in pink and took part in the annual 5K fundraiser through the streets of downtowns Little Rock and North Little Rock. Some 24,000 people were expected to walk, jog or run the event, making it one of the largest Komen races in the country. The Little Rock event has been the second-largest such race in the U.S. each of the past two years, said Shawna Long, the 2016 race chair.

Long, who arrived more than three hours before the race kicked of at 8 a.m., called it a "special morning." Of the money raised, 75 percent will stay in Arkansas and be directed toward grants for hospitals and clinics while the rest will be used for research, she said.

"I have met the most awesome survivors this year," Long said. "It is so important. I hear stories every day about survivors that have benefitted from Komen grants."

Saturday's race kicked off on Capitol Avenue just west of Broadway with participants first walking toward the state Capitol and then turning back east along 6th Street and later across the Main Street bridge into North Little Rock and back. Along the way, they passed firefighters handing out pink beads, bands and DJs playing music along the street and throngs of supporters waving signs and offering high-fives.

Some participants wore pink from head to toe while others accessorized with pink feather boas, hats or bandannas. With an outfit that included pink tights, a pink tutu, a pink wig and even a pink-dyed goatee, 51-year-old Danny Koteras of Sherwood posed for photos with race participants before the event started.

"It's just a fun thing to get out and do and support breast cancer awareness," he said, noting the disease hits close to home: his mother-in-law survived the disease and her mother died from it.

Sheila Sims, a 63-year-old from Little Rock who has been free of breast cancer for 5 years, said she enjoyed being a part of the event as a way to "give camaraderie to the sisters that are still in the battle."

"It's just wonderful people to see so many people bonding with each other for a great cause," she said. "It's a hard fight but it's a grateful fight once you do it."

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