Area residents can show their support for people with disabilities by buying a special card at Kwik Fill.

Through July 21, United Refining Co.’s Kwik Fill and Red Apple Food Mart locations will be selling paper cards to raise money for the 23rd annual Laurel Memorial Run and Walk. This is the 17th straight year that Laurel Run/Walk organizers have partnered with United Refining.

The cards will be sold at participating locations in Chautauqua and Erie counties in New York, and in Warren County, Pa. Customers who buy a card can write their name on it and have it displayed in the store. The suggested donation is $1, but donations of any amount are appreciated. Donation containers also will be set up in some locations, and people can put money in the containers if they’d prefer not to write their name on a card.

All of the money raised in Chautauqua County will go to Filling the Gap, which works with The Resource Center to improve the lives of people with disabilities and their families. Money raised in Erie and Warren counties will be split with organizations that support people with disabilities in each of those counties. In Erie County, proceeds from the sneaker sales will be split with The Arc of Erie County; in Warren County, money will be split with Bollinger Enterprises.

The Laurel Memorial Run and Walk was created by Wayne and Elaine Hotelling of Silver Creek, in honor of their oldest daughter, who had special needs. The event seeks to raise public awareness about individuals with disabilities while providing an opportunity for people with disabling conditions, and those without, to come together at a fun, family-friendly event.

Proceeds from the Laurel Memorial Run/Walk are used to enhance employment and work training opportunities for people with disabilities. Wayne Hotelling noted that support from the business community is essential to the event’s success.

“Without sponsors like Red Apple and Kwik Fill, this would not be a reality,” he said.

This year’s Laurel Memorial Run/Walk takes place July 19 and 20. The first day consists of a relay run and a 30-mile endurance run from Jamestown to Dunkirk. The following day in Silver Creek there will be an 8-kilometer run, a 5k fitness walk, a 1k fun walk, children’s runs, and “Laurel’s Legacy Lap,” in which people with disabilities take a lap around the track at the village ball field. There also will be a party featuring free food, music and activities for adults and children.

For more information about the Laurel Memorial Run/Walk, phone 661-4735 or visit www.laurel-run.org.