Hope for Depression Research Foundation Raises a Record $500,000 in
Palm Beach Race of Hope

The Hope for Depression Research Foundation’s (HDRF) Fourth Annual 5K Race of Hope to Defeat Depression gathered some 400 men, women, and children on Saturday morning in Palm Beach to support mental health awareness and urgent research into depression and anxiety.

The festive event raised a record $525,000 for HDRF’s advanced biomedical research into new treatments for clinical depression, a major global health crisis, especially in the wake of the pandemic.

HDRF Founding Chair Audrey Gruss and Board member Scott Snyder, both Palm Beach residents, served as the Co-Grand Marshals of the 5K walk/run, which started at 8 AM at the Royal Poinciana Plaza in Palm Beach. 

“I founded HDRF to lead research in the causes of depression and in their treatment,” said Gruss to the crowd, just before the 8AM starting gun.   “Depression is the Number One cause of disability worldwide, and rates of depression have tripled in the U.S. due to the pandemic.  We are moved by the groundswell of support from the Palm Beach community, which have gone above and beyond to exceed fundraising targets for this event.”

Gruss added:  “One hundred percent of all donations go directly to life-saving research at HDRF, the most advanced depression research organization in the country today.  We have several new treatments in clinical trials and we won’t quit until there’s a cure.”

Quick Pollack said: “I am honored to be a part of this inaugural committee bringing together my friends and like-minded colleagues to talk about depression and work towards raising money in coming up with new therapies.   My generation was heavily affected by the pandemic and the seclusion it brought with it.    But thankfully, many of us also experienced a sense of community and were able to talk through our fears and innermost feelings.  I am proud to be a part of a generation that destigmatizes this illness.”

At the starting gun, participants set off in staggered heats to complete the 3.1-mile course starting at The Royal Poinciana Plaza and continuing along the beautiful North Lake Trail and through the streets of Palm Beach.

The staggered heats were a safety measure to avoid crowding, ensuring a careful return to in person racing as the world emerges from the pandemic. Each runner was assigned a “start wave” according to their speed.  Lining up in the start corrals were: professional runners, casual walkers, families with babies and dogs, and teams from local businesses such as Jefferson Capital, Livingston Builders, Aktion Art, Le Bilboquet, Smith and Elkin, Fit2Run and Tennenbaum and Sullivan..