AKTIV Against Cancer, the organization co-founded by legendary runner Grete Waitz, and Helle Aanesen, announced today that Healthcare entrepreneur and cancer survivor Peter Kirk, and entrepreneur, philanthropist and veteran athlete Ethan Zohn will be this year’s honorees at the eleventh annual awards dinner, which will take place at the New York Athletic Club on October 28, the week prior to the 2025 TCS New York City Marathon. The event has generated over $750,000 in donations in the first ten years it has been held.
“As we start our second decade, we could not think of a better pair to honor than Peter and Ethan this year,” Aanesen said. “Their entrepreneurial spirit, grit, empathy, determination to succeed and most importantly connection to our cause of exercise and cancer embody everything that AKTIV Against Cancer stands for, and we are so excited they have both chosen to join a group of honorees from our first ten years.”
Peter Kirk is a husband, father, cancer survivor, CEO of Sermo and founder of the charitable organization Be Your Possible. Under Peter’s leadership over the past 25 years, Sermo has been turning physician experience, expertise, and observations into actionable business insights that benefit pharmaceutical companies, healthcare partners, and the medical community at large.
Diagnosed at the height of the pandemic with Acute Leukemia (AML) as well as double lung pneumonia, Peter received a life-saving stem cell bone marrow transplant 8 months after diagnosis, in June 2021 at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK). When Peter crossed the finish line of the New York City Marathon five months post-transplant, he knew that his life’s work had only just begun. It’s now Peter’s mission to raise money for medical research – an integral part of improving patient outcomes – and empower and inspire others along the way. Be Your Possible’s flagship event is the annual Run for Research, hosted by Peter and attracting thousands of HCPs and others globally to hit the ground running to unlock money for medical advancement. Since its inception, Run for Research has donated $1M+ to more than 50 medical research organizations. Peter has also committed to running 1,000 half marathons by the 10th anniversary of his life-saving blood stem cell transplant to raise $1,000,000 for research at MSK, creating a movement to inspire others to live up to their greatest potential – whatever that may be.
