Paige’s Butterfly Run made its traditional holiday gift donation to the Upstate Foundation, presenting a $215,000 check to benefit cancer care and research at Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital.

Paige officials present the check to Foundation and hospital officials in a brief ceremony today in the Kinney Performance Center of Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital.

“We cannot thank Chris Arnold, the Paige's Butterfly Run team, and all their community supporters enough for continuing to work in support of our patients and their families," said Toni Gary, assistant vice president for Development & Community Relations for Upstate Golisano Children's Hospital.

Since 1997, Paige’s Butterfly Run Inc. has raised almost $5 million dollars in support of pediatric cancer care at Upstate.

"Paige's Butterfly Run aims to make the difficult journey of a child's cancer diagnosis a little easier," Said Melanie Comito, MD, the Paige Yeomans Arnold Endowed Professor in Pediatric Oncology and division chief of the Waters Center for Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders at Upstate.

The funds provide financial support to families to cover everything from food and gas expenses to medical costs, other services.

Funding from Paige’s Butterfly Run purchased materials, such as backpacks, pumps and batteries, needed for patients enrolled a national study assessing the efficacy of new treatment for B-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (B-ALL).

The organization honors Baldwinsville elementary school student Paige Arnold, who was diagnosed with leukemia in 1993 when she was 6; Paige died a year later from complications from a bone marrow transplant in an effort to cure her leukemia, at Boston Children's Hospital.

The organization raises money through a variety of events throughout the year, such as Paige’s Butterfly Run, an annual event, held in June.

Caption: Paige's Butterfly Run presents a $215,000 donation of Upstate. On hand for the presentation are, from left, Melanie Comito, MD; Toni Gary and Chris Arnold.