Banner – University Medicine Announces El Tour de Tucson Primary Beneficiary

Banner – University Medicine and the Banner – University Family Care, are the official title sponsor of El Tour de Tucson, and they have named the Pima County Joint Technical Education District, known as Pima JTED, the primary beneficiary for El Tour de Tucson fundraising goals. Pima JTED offers tuition-free career and technical education programs to high school students.

This year, Banner – University Medicine and Banner – University Family Care have joined together to sponsor the 40^th annual El Tour de Tucson. The two Banner organizations are committed to help meet the state’s growing need for health care professionals which align with JTED’s goal to create enhanced educational pathways for students interested in health care careers.

Pima JTED Superintendent/CEO Kathy Prather said, “Support from El Tour de Tucson will help enable us to outfit our new Mel and Enid Zuckerman Center for Health and Medical Careers at The Bridges with some of the same advanced training equipment you’ll find in the top medical schools so that our high school students can get the experience they need to succeed in the workforce and college. Thank you to the riders, sponsors and especially the title sponsors, Banner – University Medicine and Banner – University Family Care, for improving our community by investing in the young people we serve and our community’s health and well-being.”

As the official title sponsor of El Tour de Tucson, Banner will provide an opportunity for Tucson charities to apply to become the Tour’s primary beneficiary for the 41^st El Tour de Tucson in 2024. More details to come.

The 40th El Tour de Tucson will take place on November 18, 2023. Cyclists of all ages and abilities may ride 100, 50 or 25 miles, or take part in the Fun Ride of 10, 4 or 1 miles. You can register to ride or raise funds for Diamond Children’s or JTED or for another local charity, with the option to ride solo, join or create a team. This year, there is also a 5K run/walk option. To register, please visit: https://www.bikereg.com/el-tour-de-tucson#

“It is great to see Pima JTED return as the main beneficiary for the Banner – University Medicine El Tour de Tucson. Pima JTED starts our future leaders on their career paths,” said TJ Juskiewicz, El Tour executive director.

Voted the best road cycling event for 2023 by USA Today, El Tour de Tucson is Arizona’s largest cycling event and one of the 10 largest cycling events in the United States. El Tour de Tucson has raised more than $100 million for over 100 charities. In that time, more than 266,000 cyclists of all ages and abilities have participated in the event.

Banner Health is a non-profit hospital system and each year, Banner – University Medicine, its academic medical center in Tucson, contributes more than $800 million to the Tucson community. Banner’s partnership and investment in the El Tour de Tucson is an extension of its commitment as a non-profit hospital system to give back to the communities they serve.

Banner – University Family Care Community Reinvestment program provides philanthropic support to community-based organizations to improve access to both high-quality medical acre and community-based services to address the social risk factors of health. Programs focus on housing, activities to combat social isolation, employment and educational support, and other programs that address adverse social conditions impacting health outcomes.