JACKSON, Miss.- Stinky Feet Athletics is hosting an event to honor the life and battle of cancer stricken 3-year-old Ryan LaSource and premier the documentary Conquering Kilimanjaro.
Ryan LaSource is a Madison, Mississippi native who lost his battle to cancer on Friday. At the young age of three, he spent the majority of his life in hospital rooms. His parents, Lauren and Austin LaSource, rallied behind their son in his battle with Leukemia, but little did they know that his story would spark support from an entire community.
It all began when Ryan’s father, Austin, was preparing for an Iron Man triathlon and his son was again diagnosed with cancer and had to return to the hospital. Friends decided to create a version of the Iron Man for Austin to complete.
The course was set up in Reunion off of HWY 463 in Madison.
“So it was around this time, June of 2014 some folks got together and said lets make an iron distance course for Austin so he can complete the length of an Iron Man triathlon and they named that the RyanMan,” said friend and fellow athlete Ben McDonald.
But the effort didn’t stop there. RyanMan then became a foundation that focuses on the fight against childhood cancer.
Throughout the past two years, Stinky Feet Athletics and other athletic stores in the area have hosted events to raise money for Ryan’s family as he continued treatment at Duke University Hospital.
Recently, a friend of Ryan’s family and trainer at Stinky Feet Athletics, Jeremy Jungling, participated in a documentary called “Conquering Kilimanjaro.” Jeremy is a cancer survivor himself.
The film is an inspirational shout out to cancer survivors and a celebration of the power of love and irrepressible nature of the human spirit.
“We wanted to show this film for quite a while cause we think it’s inspirational and pretty interesting but we couldn’t really find the backdrop for it. Ryan’s story has really provided us the opportunity to do that and we hope his family can benefit from it,” said Jungling.
The event will take place in honor of Ryan’s life at the Hilton Garden Inn in Flowood this Saturday June 11th. It will include donated food and beverages from nearby restaurants and Lucky Town Brewery.
The film will be premiered at the event.
Tickets are $25 for entry. That will get you food and two drink tickets. The event starts at 6:00 p.m. and 100% of the proceeds will go to Ryan LaSource’s family.
