A group of AU students were among the 320 participants in the National Eating Disorders Association Walk on the National Mall Feb. 19 to raise awareness for eating disorders.
Five teams of walkers, which also included students from the University of Maryland, Notre Dame of Maryland University and Bucknell University, trekked across the Mall despite the cold and cloudy weather.
Participants walked around the length of the Mall twice.
AU’s Wellness Center was one of the primary sponsors of the walk, according to an email by Alan Duffy, one of the primary organizers of the event and the AU’s eating disorders manager.
ABC 7 was the official media sponsor.
Duffy said the purpose of the walk was to raise awareness about the seriousness of eating disorders. About 24 million Americans suffer from eating disorders, he said.
Bridget Joyce, a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences, volunteered at the event with other members of Alpha Phi Omega.
“It [is] a really good cause,” Joyce said.
Members of Delta Tau Delta also walked as well.
Bryan Sullivan, a junior in CAS, walked because he knew someone with an eating disorder.
“My sister has been recently diagnosed with minor anorexia, and I’m trying to veer her in the right direction,” he said.
Christyn Ser, a sophomore in the School of Communication, was diagnosed with anorexia when she was younger.
“I’m coming full circle to help others,” she said.
Kaitlyn Wozniak, a CAS junior and one of the student organizers of the walk, said she was diagnosed with anorexia when she was in high school. She was still struggling to overcome the disorder when she came to AU, but was able to fully recover.
“What is so great about supporting this cause is that I can help educate people and spread a message of hope,” she said. “Eating disorders have become an epidemic. They’re also preventable and recovery is possible.”
The walk raised over $32,000 for programs used to help raise awareness for eating disorders.
The walk kicks off National Body Image Awareness Week, which includes a Feb. 21 panel on eating disorders at Whole Foods in Tenleytown and a screening of “Someday Melissa” on March 18 in Baltimore.
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