After finding out in February of 2021 that his brother-in-law, Robert Rodriguez, had been diagnosed with stage four prostate cancer, Monrovia’s own Craig Iwai was motivated to bring awareness to the disease.
As someone who has started two businesses — Iwai Cooling & Heating and Aloha Junk Removal — along with finding the non-profit organization, Monrovia Surf Club, and his own personal gym, Ohana Fitness, Iwai describes himself as someone who “sets his mind on a goal.”
He quickly decided that his next goal was to bring attention to the disease that affects his brother-in-law, along with nearly 250,000 Americans per year.
Placing a huge focus on fitness and health, those elements are key components that Iwai uses to stay motivated. And with all the intense emotions that he felt following the news of Robert, he wanted to do “something extreme” related to fitness; similar to running 58 miles for his 58th birthday — which he actually did several months prior.
Iwai came up with the idea of walking 100 miles, not only to bring awareness to prostate cancer but also help inspire others to stay healthy and keep active.
Announced from Jan. 29 through Jan. 30, the walk is expected to take 35-40 hours to complete and will start at midnight. It will begin and end in Monrovia, with the path starting from Monrovia to Long Beach. Following this, it will head to Torrance Beach and walk the strand to the Santa Monica Pier, only to return back to Monrovia to complete the walk.
Along with bringing awareness to prostate cancer, money will also be raised through this 100-mile walk to help the Prostate Cancer Foundation. With a goal of raising $10,000 to $15,000, the walk has incorporated sponsors and collected individual donations to help reach Iwai’s goal.
The cause also created a Venmo account that will accept donations from anyone willing to help. To donate visit https://venmo.com/u/Robert-Rodriguez-24.
For more information on the Prostate Cancer Foundation, visit https://www.pcf.org/.
