Foxcroft School students presented a big check — worth more than $8,000 — to the Cherry Blossom Breast Cancer Foundation Wednesday morning, but the announcement that the School will host the 2013 Cherry Blossom Nanette's Walk, Fun Run and Pooch Prance as part of its official Centennial celebration kick off may have been even bigger news.

The Walk will take place Sunday, September 29, said Foxcroft Assistant Head of School Sheila McKibbin, and Chairman of the CBBCF Board James Atkins, over scenic paths and crosscountry trails on the 500-acre campus. It will be the flagship event of a "Centennial Day of Service" that includes community projects organized by Foxcroft alumna and friends across the country and around the world.

"Since Miss Charlotte started this school, 'giving back' has been one of our core values," said McKibbin,. "We believe especially in helping women and supporting the local community – because we are all a part of that community, whether we come from China or from Middleburg. The Cherry Blossom Breast Cancer Foundation work does that and so it is very appropriate and extremely exciting that the Walk will be here and that our Centennial celebration begin with service."

"Foxcroft has been a valuable partner in Cherry Blossom's success," said Atkins. "We are honored to accept the invitation to be part of Foxcroft's 100th birthday celebration."

Centennial Community Service chair Karen Lilly and Community Relations co-chair Marcy Harris, who were instrumental in moving the Walk to Foxcroft, shared their excitement and hopes for the day with Foxcroft students and faculty.

"Thirty years after I graduated, the importance of giving back is still ingrained in me, as it will be for you," said Lilly, a Foxcroft alumna, current parent, and president of the Parents' Association. "The Day of Service is really just Foxcroft doing what we do, because that's who we are, but we want to make it global, so whether your friends and family are nearby or far away, encourage them to be part of this special start to the Centennial celebration."

Harris, a past parent and current trustee who has supported Foxcroft's involvement in the Cherry Blossom from the start, urged the students and faculty to help make September's event the "biggest and best Walk ever."

"Maybe you want to challenge the other high schools in the area to see who can get the most people to participate," she said. "If you live in the area, get your family and friends to come. Let's really get behind it and show Foxcroft off for the wonderful, caring place that it is."

That caring is already evident in the generous check that senior Elsie Spencer, juniors Kate Eagen, Caroline Huckabay, and Andeulazia Hughes-Murdock, and sophomore Jean Kang presented to Atkins and Foundation Board members Mary Jo Black and Lori McGuinness.

The check represented $5,371 raised at January's Think Pink Basketball Tournament, organized by Athletic Director Michelle Woodruff and the Athletic Association, and $3,000 from last fall's Walk.

"Since our founding seven years ago," he added, " Foxcroft's leaders and girls have been part of each Cherry Blossom Nanette's Walk, and other events. The phenomenal success of the 2013 Think Pink Tournament is another tribute to these dynamic young women and their leaders."

Foxcroft School is the number one single contributor to the CBBCF, Atkins says, and last spring the student body was named one of the first Cherry Blossom "champions" for its enthusiastic and generous support. The Cherry Blossom Breast Cancer Foundation supports early detection, treatment, and awareness of this insidious disease in Loudoun and Fauquier counties as well as research to find a cure.