YOUNGSTOWN - The community laced up their tennis shoes Sunday morning for the 16th annual Panerathon in Youngstown to support the Joanie Abdu Comprehensive Breast Care Center (JACBCC).

Participants were allowed to choose a 10k run or a two-mile run/walk.

Since its beginning, the Panerathon has raised over 5 million dollars that went back into the community, primarily to support people diagnosed with breast cancer. 

"Since we opened in November of 2011, we have screened over 160,000 breast imaging exams. The van started in 2016, and it has performed over 15,000 screenings. We have diagnosed over 2,200 cancers," said Juli Dulay, the manager of the JACBCC, when asked about how the resources gained from the Panerathon and other forms of donation have helped the community. 

This year's theme was Stronger Together. The wide range of origins exemplified it for its participants. There were runners from 20 different states across the U.S. and even a pair of runners all the way from Germany. 

 "Year after year, we continue to be amazed by the generosity of the community. We continue to grow in size and money raised each year," said Allen Ryan, a public relations official for the event.

"You know it's hard to put into words. I'm a seven-year breast cancer survivor. I've been coming here for the past seven years now, and the magnitude of this event grows and grows from one year to another. And it's just heart-warming - the community support and people from surrounding areas here to support a common cause," said Claire Jones, a patient of JACBCC.