Jog for Jill—and Honor the Woman Who Inspired a Generation

One person can make a difference. If you have any doubt, look no further than the legacy of Jill Costello, a college student at the University of California at Berkeley who was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer at age 20. Her motto was “Beat Lung Cancer,” a sentiment that her coach and teammates on the Cal Berkeley crew team had permanently etched on their boat.

Her courage and determination in her fight against the disease inspired an entire generation.

Lung cancer is still rare in people under 40, but it tends to be diagnosed at late stages with devastating consequences. Because of Costello’s story and her work with the Addario for Lung Cancer (now part of GO2 for Lung Cancer), the foundation created the Genomics of Young Lung Cancer clinical trial to uncover the mutation driving cancer in younger adults. A newly launched study, Epidemiology of Young Lung Cancer, is now looking at why these young people are developing the disease.

Jill Costello’s legacy lives on not only in GO2 for Lung Cancer’s ongoing research into young lung cancer but also via the annual Jog for Jill 5K started by her Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority members in 2011 and still hosted by the sorority today. The annual event has to date raised $200,000 for research into lung cancer.

Sorority sisters Rylee Warmington and Natalie Slosar said they chose to chair the event (in 2020 and 2021 respectively) because, “Jill’s passion and strength lives on each year as we run both to preserve her memory and defeat lung cancer. At Jog for Jill, we do not simply run to run. We run for a better future and a brighter tomorrow.”