EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J., May 4, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The Lupus Research Alliance (LRA) will unite dedicated lupus champions for the New Jersey Walk with Us to Cure Lupus event on Saturday, May 9, at a new and exciting location – the Meadowlands Racing & Entertainment/Meadowland Racetrack.  Since its inception 23 years ago, the New Jersey Walk has raised more than $10 million for lupus research.

The Walk takes place during Lupus Awareness Month, when attention turns to this chronic autoimmune disease affecting millions of people worldwide. The Walk allows devoted supporters to tangibly act on the Lupus Research Alliance’s theme for the month – “Hope in Action: The Future of Lupus” – as they come together to fundraise for critical lupus research.

“Every step taken at a Walk with Us to Cure Lupus event brings us closer to freeing the world of this disease,” said Albert T. Roy, President & CEO of the Lupus Research Alliance. “These events are a powerful reminder that progress happens through community. We are continually inspired by the strength and dedication of those who show up, speak out, and come together to support life-changing research for the millions impacted by lupus worldwide.” 

Featured speakers at this year’s Walk include Mr. Roy; Brenda Blackmon, long-time lupus champion and TV personality; Jesse Linder, VP, Community Relations at New York Jets; Chris DiNardo, Head of Global Marketing for Lupus, Johnson & Johnson; and Bishop Rudy V. Carlton, Lupus Research Alliance Board member and Senior Pastor of Jehovah-Jireh Baptist Church. The keynote speaker and 2026 New Jersey Walk Ambassador will be Martha Chisholm, a person living with lupus and a member of the Patient Advocates for Lupus Studies (PALS) clinical trials education program, overseen by the LRA clinical affiliate Lupus Therapeutics.

“I became involved with the LRA because it is the world’s largest research hub dedicated to helping all of us living with lupus in the search for a cure,” commented Ms. Chisholm. “I hope sharing my positive experiences taking part in lupus clinical research will inspire others to explore options for participation. Opportunities like the Walk give us those of us who are on the same journey – whether far along or in the very beginning – the chance to connect, help, and support one another.”  

The Lupus Research Alliance thanks the many dedicated Walkers as well as sponsors whose donations make the New Jersey Walk with Us to Cure Lupus possible, including National Walks Sponsor Genentech, which has been proudly partnering with the LRA to support all 2026 Walks. The New Jersey Walk is also sponsored by the New York Jets, Johnson & Johnson, RWJBarnabas Health, and Atlantic Health.

Walk Details
When: Saturday, May 9, 2026
Where: Meadowlands Racing & Entertainment/Meadowland Racetrack (1 Racetrack Drive, East Rutherford, NJ 07073)  
Time: Registration opens: 9:00 AM ET; Walk starts at: 10:30 AM ET

Includes light refreshments, fun festivities, 360° photo booth, magicians, characters, face painting, Kids Zone, and inspirational speakers. There will also be opportunities to take photos with New York Jets players.

Register now on the New Jersey Walk website or email Lisa Champion at lchampion@lupusresearch.org for more information.

About Lupus
Lupus is a chronic, complex autoimmune disease that affects millions of people worldwide. In lupus, the immune system, meant to defend against infections, produces autoantibodies that mistake the body’s own cells as foreign, causing other immune cells to attack organs such as the kidneys, brain, heart, lungs, and skin, as well as blood and joints. Ninety percent of people with lupus are women, most often diagnosed between the ages of 15-45. Black, Latinx, Indigenous, Asian, and Pacific Islander people are disproportionately affected by lupus.

About the Lupus Research Alliance
The Lupus Research Alliance is the largest non-governmental, non-profit funder of lupus research worldwide. The organization aims to transform treatment by funding the most innovative lupus research, fostering scientific talent, and driving discovery toward better diagnostics, improved treatments and, ultimately, a cure for lupus. Because the Lupus Research Alliance’s Board of Directors funds all administrative and fundraising costs, 100% of all donations go to support lupus research programs.

For more information or to donate to lupus research, visit the LRA at LupusResearch.org and on social media at: X, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/join-the-lupus-research-alliances-walk-with-us-to-cure-lupus-on-may-9-at-new-jerseys-meadowlands-racetrack-302760822.html

SOURCE Lupus Research Alliance