Foundation Volunteer, Liz Burns, to Carry Torch for Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games

Liz Burns tries to stay warm as she gets ready to carry the Olympic torch in Calgary for the 2010 Winter Games. She is carrying the torch in honor of all people with CF.

Liz Burns, a Cystic Fibrosis Foundation volunteer, will carry the Olympic Torch today in Calgary as it makes its way to Vancouver and the Opening Ceremony for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games.

Burns, incoming board president for the Foundation’s Georgia Chapter, has helped raise more than $600,000 for CF research, care and education programs. She is a senior national sales executive for Coca-Cola North America.

“Liz is a passionate and devoted volunteer, and we are thrilled she will carry the Olympic Flame in honor of people with cystic fibrosis and raise more awareness about this devastating disease,” said Robert J. Beall, Ph.D., president and CEO of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. “We thank Coca-Cola for selecting Liz for this honor and supporting her mission — and ours — to find a cure and change the lives of every person with CF.”

Burns is scheduled to carry the torch at 4:42 p.m. M.T. today, and is one of 20 
U.S. Torchbearers selected by Coca-Cola for their commitment to create meaningful and enduring change in local and global communities.

The Olympic Torch Relay lasts for 106 days, covers more than 27,000 miles and links more than 1,000 communities in Canada. The Olympics begin Feb. 12, 2010.

Burns was named “Volunteer of the Year” by the Foundation’s Georgia Chapter in 2008. She chairs one of the Foundation’s largest fundraising events, called Chocolate, an annual gala held in Atlanta.