City staffer racing for charity in Nike marathon

Daliance Kirkland Ross, administrative assistant in the training division of the Biloxi Fire Department, will honor the memory of a longtime Biloxi city employee this Sunday when she competes in the Nike Women’s Marathon in San Francisco.

Kirkland Ross was the granddaughter of the late Jean Kirkland, who worked in the Biloxi accounting division for 20 years before retiring in the early 1990s.

“When I learned that this marathon was created to raise money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, I decided it was something I had to be a part of,” said Kirkland Ross. “My grandmother died of non-Hodgkin Lymphoma after battling it off-and-on for many years.”

To participate, Kirkland Ross had to commit to raising at least $3,500 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. As the race approaches, she is a few hundred dollars short of her goal.

“Everyone has been great about contributing,” she said. “Unfortunately, one of the commitments was withdrawn at the last moment and we’re scrambling to find some more donors.”

Anyone interested in making a 100-percent tax-free donation to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society on behalf of Kirkland Ross can do so by contacting her at 228-365-0114.