Rebecca Farm will announce $71,000 in awards today being donated to national and local organizations in the fight against breast cancer in the second year of its “Halt Cancer at X” initiative.

This summer $13,000 was raised through contributions collected from a $5 spectator parking donation during The Event at Rebecca Farm. Another $58,000 was raised through pledges collected by competitors and other donations directly to the fund.

The awards will be presented at The Rebecca Chaney Broussard Center for Nursing and Health Science at Flathead Valley Community College at 4 p.m.

The annual Event at Rebecca Farm is an equestrian triathlon that attracts more than 500 competitors and thousands of spectators every July. “Halt Cancer at X” was started in memory of The Event’s founder, Becky Broussard, who died from breast cancer.

The initiative takes its name from the first competition and the first station in eventing. During the dressage competition, riders halt at the ‘X’ — a spot in the center of the arena where the horse and rider stop to acknowledge the judge before continuing their test.

Like the riders who pause their horses before they officially enter into competition, Broussard’s daughter Sarah wanted the initiative wrapped into the heart and soul of The Event as a way to bring a larger awareness to a disease that affects so many families.

Last year, $50,000 was awarded to a national research project that seeks to provide the means to more effectively manage breast cancer malignancy.

“Because of the generosity of ‘Halt Cancer at X’ donations, we can already claim significant and direct contributions to the advancement of our breast cancer research,” Dr. Mario Capecchi, distinguished professor of human genetics and biology at the University of Utah and a winner of the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine, said in a press release. “We are grateful for the support of basic research into this disease that still takes far too many of our mothers, daughters, sisters and friends.”

In addition to the research grant, Kalispell Regional Hospital Foundation’s cancer services video series was awarded $7,500 last year.

The Kalispell Regional Hospital Foundation Paul Bass Fund’s “One2One for Cancer Survivors” scholarship program also received a $7,500 award in 2012. One2One Weight Loss at the Summit in Kalispell started last October and has helped 49 people lose a total of 316 pounds. Five members are breast cancer survivors, and three of these have used the Halt Cancer at X Scholarship.