Visiting Capitol Hill (again)

I hope you weren't silly enough to think that I'd stop working with NPF (or running, kinda) once the Challenge "ended", were you?!  That was just the beginning!  As far as I'm concerned, my mom is still struggling with this disease and it's still taking her freedom and causing a lot of frustration, so why would my work be done?  And the more involved I've gotten with NPF, the more I've realized she's far from the only one. 

The answer, clearly, is I won't.  Sure, I'll run less, but I'll never stop fighting.  I want to see my mom smiling and walking without a cane.  I know a cure is going to take awhile and I'm very realistic, but I also know that we won't get there without funding the research and the organizations that are needed so that we can get better medicines, and then one day, maybe even a cure. 

 I was lucky enough to meet Congressman Moran.  You may remember I wrote about him last year when he ran Dash4Dad!

So that is why I couldn't have been more excited when NPF asked me if I wanted to be involved in another Capitol Hill event.  I checked my calendar, made sure I could get the time off from work, and then happily said yes.  It was a much different format than the larger Capitol Hill Day I did back in June.  This event was originally just for some of the great scientists who are working to fight this disease.  This year, they decided to change it up a bit and bring one advocate from each region of the country (with the exception of our region, which had 2).  Though the scientists weren't in every meeting, ours was a great group which included someone from NPF, the organization which handles the political involvement for NPF, two advocates, and a scientist.  The other advocate has a daughter who has psoriasis and stiff joints, and the effects of the medicine (which will hopefully slow/prevent serious psoriatic arthritis) have caused her to miss almost two full years of school.  It's horrible and serves to remind me why I'm out there.

 Congressman Doyle, our group, and the CEO of NPF

It was a busy few days!  We had a working dinner the first night where we all met each other and then went over what we would discuss and would need to be prepared for the next day.  Though some had never advocated on Capitol Hill, a lot of us had been there before.  The next day we met with seven different congressional offices to share our stories. 
It was SO successful!  We had a lot of congressional aids who listened to our stories, asked questions, and said they would pass along what they had learned.  We were also lucky enough to get to see Congressman Moran, and we had two meetings where the congressman was in the entire meeting to hear our stories and talk to us.  Congressman Doyle, who supports our bill, sat and talked with us, along with the CEO of NPF. 

We also met with Congressman Altmire, who said that he was so touched by our stories that he agreed to sign the bill.  Can you believe that?  That is truly what advocacy is all about.  After we left, some members of our group were teary eyed, realizing how important this was.  It took a lot of strength for my mom to let me share her story so publicly.  It's deeply personal, and involves a lot of frustration.  But this was the reward we needed, when we realized that by telling her struggles we could hopefully change the future for others.  That is why I loved the event, and that is why I won't stop advocating.  Once you hear what my mom's been through, it's hard not to want to get involved.

Congressman Altmire, who was so touched by our stories he agreed to sign our bill!

Afterward everyone had a little downtime at the hotel, but since I wasn't staying there I just hung out in the lobby.  I saw one group who was going to grab drinks nearby, so I joined them for a bit.  Great to spend time with such wonderful people!  Then we went to a great dinner where we socialized and heard more about the scientists and their work.  I metroed home, exhausted but unable to stop smiling.  I called my mom and told her the good news - we are making a difference.  I felt hope, and I felt ready to keep going.

Senator Cardin, Mardia, and me

The next day I was paired with a different team, and I had one meeting with Senator Cardin's office.  We saw him walking in as we were waiting for our meeting, and he kindly took a picture with us and welcomed us.  Another great experience!  After our meeting, I rushed back to the bus to head to NIH, where we heard presentations from the researchers, visited two labs, saw the lab that does genetic sequencing, and discussed how they were working to fight the disease.  Some scientists are looking at the disease from the inside (focusing on the genes) and others are focusing on the outside (the skin).  Admittedly, I understood very little of what they said since I'm not a science person, but I still found this one of the best parts of the day.  They answered questions and patiently tried to explain complicated medical info in understandable terms, talked about what they thought would lead to the biggest breakthroughs, and overall just made us see how important their research is.  Sadly, the day came to a close and it was time to head home, but this was an awesome event and one I won't forget anytime soon.  Thanks NPF for continuing to include me, and I look forward to continuing to advocate in the future!

Fear

Fear.  Most people talk about it as if it's a bad thing.  I don't quite agree.  Sure, being SO afraid of something that you don't do it is a problem.  But fear itself, I think, is a great thing. 

A few years ago, I was climbing and rappelling on a rock wall in West Virginia.  Before we started, the instructor looked around and asked who was afraid.  Then he asked who wasn't afraid.  He said "you guys are the ones I'm worried about.  You should be scared."  It basically summed up my feelings.  There is nothing wrong with being afraid, and in most cases, it is healthy to be afraid.  It means you're thinking through the risks and the consequences.  Fear is good.  But only if you don't let that fear win. 

If you compare a list of the most memorable, life changing, happy moments in my life, almost all of them will also fall into the list of the scariest times.  Climbing Mt. Rainier?  Terrifying.  Committing to run twelve half marathons when you haven't even run one?  Oh yeah, I was scared.  Hitting 137 mph in a racecar?  Scary leading up to it, awesome during.  Getting to the starting line of my first half marathon, and then eventually my first full marathon just 8 or so months later?  My heart was racing even before I started running! 



But those events all have something huge in common.  They shaped me into the person I am today, and I don't regret a single one of them.  In fact, I know I'm much stronger and much happier because of all those experiences.  When I was really struggling cognitively after my concussion, my fear was so great that it prevented me from healing.  That's the kind of fear I try to avoid, and I hope next time something scary happens I learn to accept the fear without letting it take over the situation. 

This fall, I will be heading off to business school to get my MBA.  I have been accepted into a few programs and am still trying to decide what the best option for me is next year.  Was I terrified when I applied, and am I scared of all the changes that I will face in the next few months?  Absolutely.  But there isn't a second where I think about not going because I'm scared.  Scary situations often change your life for the better.

How do you put a year of running into words?  I don't think you can.  So this post is going to be a visual representation and a summary of the fun adventures that filled the year.  Hope you enjoy!


Jingle Bell Run/Walk for Arthritis (10K)
November 20, 2010
49:46

1) Walt Disney World Half Marathon
Sat, Jan 8, 2011
1:51:09

2) Disney's Princess Half Marathon
Feb 27, 2011
1:49:07

3) National Half Marathon
March 26, 2011
1:45:28

4) Dismal Swamp Stomp Half Marathon
April 16, 2011
1:48:31

(the shirt was massive, so I gave it to my dad)

5) Country Music Marathon & 1/2 Marathon
April 30, 2011
1:49:41

6) Frederick Running Festival
May 7, 2011
1:44:53

7) Alexandria Running Festival
May 29, 2011
1:49:36 (I actually ran over 15 miles to finish, but stopped my watch around 13.1)

8) ZOOMA Annapolis Half Marathon (Kristen's first race!)
June 5, 2011
1:49:55

Dash4Dad 4 miler (Adam's first race!)
June 19, 2011
32:54

9) Rock n Roll Virginia Beach Half Marathon
Sept 4, 2011
1:45:23 (Rock Encore medal for two Rock n Roll races)

10) Rock n Roll Philly Half Marathon (Adam's first half marathon!)
Sept 18, 2011
1:55:36 (Triple Crown medal for three Rock n Roll races)

Clarendon Day (5K downhill, jog back uphill, 10K run with Adam)
5K - 21:26
10K - 51:10

11) Baltimore Running Festival
Oct 15, 2011
1:44:19 (and Maryland Double medal for Frederick and Baltimore)

12) Marine Corps Marathon (full marathon)
Oct 30, 2011
4:14:30

I also became a member of Team Refuel which is so exciting!  I love to drink chocolate milk after my long runs to recover, so I was honored to be part of the team.

2012 will bring advocating and running, though in smaller doses than 2011.  Look for periodic updates - I'll be going to Capitol Hill and joining some of the top scientists involved in psoriasis/psoriatic arthritis research in March.  Can't wait to tell you all about this experience!

Happy New Year

They were all for you, Mom.

Happy New Year to all!  What an incredible year it has been.  Admittedly, I have seen some of the best moments of my life and some of the most challenging, all in one year.  I am forever grateful for the lessons I've learned, the great friends I've shared it with, and most of all, the support and love of my family.  Ending the year with a concussion that has basically halted my life has been frustrating.  I've cried and complained and gotten upset more times than I care to admit.  But I've got a great doctor who is helping me to get through it, and hope to be back to a normal life in the next few months (which I hope will include a return to running, though at the moment walking a mile or two is a big enough challenge).  I look forward to 2012.

But beyond that, this has been one of the best years of my life.  I've learned how lucky I am to have supportive friends and family.  We raised over $18,800 this year for NPF.  I am just in awe and I don't even know what to say.  Never ever did I expect to raise that much.  To everyone who made it possible, THANK YOU.   You gave me hope and inspired me, but more importantly, you gave my mom hope, and you gave everyone suffering with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis hope.  That is a lot of money that can make a tangible difference in research. 

To my friends who ran races with me or asked about them or donated, thank you.  This idea of running twelve half marathons in a year was a bit crazy, and yet it worked.  I learned that if you want others to care about something, you have to show them how much you care first.  All in all, our dedicated team completed 26 half marathons, one marathon, and a variety of other small races as a team (some 10k, 5ks, four milers, etc along the way).  Personally, I completed 11 half marathons and a full marathon.  Though disappointing I missed the grand finale in Las Vegas, I still finished the Challenge (plus some!) and couldn't be happier about it. To the key players - Kristen, Adam, and Matt, I am so appreciative for your dedication and tenacity.  I could have never done it without you guys and I hope you had half as much fun as I did this year.  I also need to thank my dad for agreeing to match every donation that we received.  His dedication to helping my mom through this and his desire to fight this disease is inspiring.

I can tell you that I will never be the same after this year.  Though I'm not going to go into all the details on the blog, 2012 is going to bring some big changes in my life (all in a great way), and some of them will be directly shaped by what I learned and realized this year.  Though I was leading a good life before the Challenge, I didn't feel fulfilled.  I now know that helping others and working to make a difference is an essential part of my life and something I want to spend more time doing in the future, whether it be through my career, personal work, or some combination.  

I have learned that you only get stronger by pushing yourself mentally and physically.  This time a year ago, I didn't know if I could finish a half marathon.  Now, I can proudly say I am a marathoner and have never felt so honored as the moment a marine congratulated me and told me I was strong, as if they aren't the greatest heroes in our country. 

I've faced injuries and sicknesses, but every one has made me realize how lucky I am for my health and my strength, and helped me to empathize with the struggles that my mom faces on a daily basis.  The confidence I have gained from running these races will translate into countless other aspects of my life because I now know that limits are only there if you allow them to be there.  And I've seen it in others too; Kristen did incredible in her half marathon (though unfortunately faced knee surgery shortly thereafter that halted her running), Adam went from being challenged by a 4 miler in June to running a great half marathon in September, and Matt went from running very little last year to running 12 half marathons this year.  Everyone has said how much stronger they feel and what a great accomplishment it was and I am so happy for our team.

In all of this, I have tried to adopt an attitude that everything happens for a reason.  My mom's sickness is one of the hardest things my family has faced, but I was determined to make something good happen from it.  Darius Rucker has a song called "This" that I absolutely love.  The lyrics go:

"I don't really know how I got here but I'm so glad that I did,
And its crazy to think that one little thing can change all of it,
Maybe it didn't turn out like I planned,
Maybe that's why I'm such, such a lucky man,

For every stoplight I didn't make,
Every chance I did or I didn't take,
All the nights I went too far,
All the girls that broke my heart,
All the doors that I had to close,
All the things I know but I didn't know,
Thank God for all I missed
Because it led me here to this"

That song is the epitome of how I feel.  When things turn bad, you have to believe it's for a reason and it's all to lead you to something better.  If you can really believe this (which admittedly can be hard sometimes), you can get through anything.  When I look back on some of the toughest moments in my life, they often ended up leading me to the best because of the strength I gained or the changes I made as a result.  Though I sound like I'm slightly digressing from the Challenge, I'm really not.  I sat a little over a year ago pondering how my mom was facing so many challenges and saying "Why her?"  I thought, I cried, I got angry, and then I decided to fight back and create the Challenge.  Though I still wonder why she has to fight such a tough battle, I now know that something good came out of it, and I hope to make even more happen in the future.  Face every day as a way to improve the future. 

Thank you, thank you, thank you.  I am so lucky.  Here's to 2012!

I'm a marathoner!

 Love the medal.  I'm probably biased, but I think it might be my favorite.

Oh.my.goodness.  I am a marathoner!  I've wanted to run a full marathon for SO long, and as I said earlier, I got a Marine Corps registration back in February since it sold out in 28 hours.  But I had so much going on and life got in the way, and 2 of my 3 longest training runs never happened.  I don't regret it - I chose to drop them - because I just couldn’t handle all of the half marathons and my other commitments while making time for the training runs, and that was the right choice for me.  Yet, I still had put a lot of time into training and I couldn't help but want to run MCM.

 Parachuting to the start with an American flag.  Really great way to start a race.

 The flyover at the start

And I did it!  I crossed running a full marathon off my bucket list!  It wasn't easy.  In fact, it was one of the more painful experiences of my life.  The race started out great for me.  It was a very cold day and waiting at the start made me nervous.  In fact, the day before it had snowed a tiny bit, which is basically unheard of in DC in October.  I ultimately decided to run in pants and a long sleeve shirt, which I think was too much by the end of the race but it wasn't unbearable.

 It was SOOO cold.  And I was SOOO nervous.

As we got going, I started with the 4 hour group with the plan to drop back around the half way mark. I somehow got ahead of the 4 hour pacegroup (the race was crowded and staying with them was honestly taking more effort than it was helping me), and I'm not sure when they passed me but at some point I fell behind them.  I met some nice people, held a few brief conversations, ran up a bridge covered in ice (eesh!), and was feeing solid.  Since I’m used to running much faster for 13 miles, everything felt good and in control.  I got to see Adam a few times, and he even jumped into to run with me for a few seconds and made me feel great.

 Near the start

Here we go!

Then mile 20 happened.  Probably not coincidentally, 20 miles was my longest training run to date, and that training run had ended with me walking into my apartment and bursting into tears.  Not a confidence instilling event. 

It didn't disappoint in this race either, as somewhere in that mile my Gatorade and GU did not stay down.  I'll keep details to a minimum, but things started to go downhill after that.  Then my calf muscles started to spasm and I had to walk really frequently to be able to keep moving at all.  I would tell myself to just run 100 steps and then I could walk 20, but I don’t think I ever even made it to 100 because my calves would spasm so bad.  It was painful, and it was difficult.  But in a lot of ways, that's why I'm even prouder - because I did not give up.  Sure, there's no shame in dropping out, but I wanted and in some ways I needed to do this.  So I did.

I'm so spoiled from being used to the DC views, but this reminds me how great the area is.

The day before the race I picked up my registration (since I'd paid I figured I'd get the tshirt anyway), and it wasn't until we were walking out, a full 15 hours before the race, that I officially decided to run it.  I chose not to tell anyone other than my family or Adam that it was definitely happening.  It sounds silly, but I was afraid that everyone knowing would put too much pressure on me to finish and I wouldn’t drop out if I felt that it was the right choice. My ultimate goal was 4:20, and despite slowing down a TON for the last six miles, I finished in 4:14:30.  Nothing too great, but for me, a huge victory. 

I wasn't giving up!

The marines did a great job with this race, and I’d highly recommend it for anyone looking for a first marathon.  Plus, the crowd support was tremendous.  The pride of having a marine place a medal around my neck and congratulate me, when of course they are incredible heroes, is a moment I will never forget.  Whenever I thought I couldn’t take another step, I thought about how they defend our freedom daily and the struggles they go through that make a marathon seem easy, and suddenly I felt the strength to go on.   

 Calling mom after the race. 

I honestly thought I would cry at the end of the race, but I was too tired to do even that.  I am so proud to have been part of this race and to push my limits.  And of course, I’m now one of those annoying people with the 26.2 sticker on their car!  This was probably one of the greatest moments of my life and I will never ever forget it.  I'm so glad I pushed through and so appreciative of all the support I received.  As always, this one’s for you, Mom.

I wore a sign on my back for the race that said "This one's for you, Mom."

 Celebrating at the finish!

Baltimore Running Festival

I was pretty close to the start

I need to take a page out Adam's raceplan book and ...well, actually stick with my raceplan.  Baltimore half marathon was supposed to be an easy one.  The course has a fair amount of hills, plus I hadn't decided if I was doing Marine Corps Marathon which was only two weeks away or not (basically, training didn't go as planned, but it didn't totally stop either...so I was thinking of either running with my slightly abridged training or waiting until I felt more prepared).  For Baltimore, I was shooting for 1:50 or 1:52, but suspected I'd run a little bit faster than that.
The race was in, you guessed it, Baltimore.  I was planning to just drive there the day of the race, so my friend Kyle was kind enough to get my packet for me the day before.  Adam and I left Arlington with plenty of time to spare in case we hit traffic from the race or had trouble parking, which we were told might be likely.  Sure enough, we got near Baltimore and the exits were at a stop.  We noticed that our directions listed a different way to go as well, so we took a chance and got off at a different exit, somehow managing to avoid a really long line of traffic.  We went to one of the lots that was suggested but was farther away, and easily found a spot.  Things were looking good!

He was there to cheer me on at the start.  Isn't he great?

We met Kyle and his friends to pick up my number.  The race start was pretty spread out, since the start and the finish were different places and the bag drop-off area was near the finish.  Though we were there with a ton of time, we had a lot of wandering to do to drop off my stuff, get to the start, watch the marathoners cross the course, etc.  I made it to the starting area and I was in the first corral.  A bit surprising, but I usually feel that the closer you can be to the start, the better.  I think a lot of people intentionally list a faster starting time than they plan to run, so it can be difficult to navigate around them.

I'm ready!

The race start rolled around and I was ready to go!  The weather was really pretty mild and a pleasant temperature, but it was SO windy.  The start was shielded (or the wind picked up during the race, I'm not quite sure) and the first few miles were fine.  Even though the hills should have been tough since I don't train on a lot of hills, I just wasn't struggling.  We ran around a lake area, and it was very scenic and pleasant, though the wind was really bad on the return trip around the lake.  The upside was that it made running with the wind even faster!  

Overall, a very pleasant race.  We merged with the marathoners, who were about half done, near the start of the race.  I'm sure it was difficult for them to merge into a ton of fresh half marathoners, but it was a very easy transition for me.  We ran through some interesting parts of Baltimore (and quite frankly some I wouldn't have minded skipping).  The fans were great though!  Energetic and helped me to push through when I started to drag.

It was a pretty big race

It must be because I was used to running 15-20 mile long runs on the weekend, but the race felt so easy and I just felt very solid.  I didn't stop to walk at all, and the hills never bothered me.  I planned to start fast, then slow down when I hit the hills and cruise to the finish.  I did follow this plan slightly, except that I started faster than planned, and slowed down less than planned.  I finished strong, loving the crowds of spectators cheering us through the area right next to Camden Yards.  

 I was SO close at this point

My official time was 1:44:19, making this my PR race for the year despite the plan for it to be an easy race.  So great!  I was a little worried it would tire me out for Marine Corps if I chose to run it in two weeks, but I had felt so good during the race I decided to just go for it.  Those are the kind of races you love as a runner, where you feel like your training has prepared you well and all of the stars align for a good day.  I got to celebrate at the end with Adam, where we also picked up my second medal since I had run Frederick, part of the Baltimore series, which qualified me for a "Maryland double" medal.  I didn't get to hang around Baltimore too long after the race, but this was one for the books!

 Race medal and Maryland Double medal

Why I'm Thankful

I spent this Thanksgiving realizing what I’m truly thankful for in life.  Life has thrown a lot of curveballs lately.  Though this blog is, and always will be, about running and raising money for National Psoriasis Foundation, there are a few life updates you need to understand at the moment. 

The short story is that life has gotten crazier every time I expected it to calm down.  Some were personal choices, some were unexpected traveling, and then – well, the rest.  Renovations at my current apartment building caused them to try to kick us out in less than a month (which, by the way, is illegal), and after many difficult conversations led to us moving out in about two weeks with some concessions.  If you’ve ever dealt with the Arlington rental market, you know it’s not the easiest.  I’m glad to say that despite the stress and tears, we now have a beautiful apartment – much nicer than our old one – and are happily settled. 

Just as we got settled, I was enjoying our beautiful new kitchen and tripped into the cabinet.  It wasn’t the hardest fall, but apparently enough to cause a concussion.  However, since it wasn’t that bad, it went undiagnosed in the beginning.  Being totally confused and unable to think clearly is a terrifying feeling and I must admit I was pretty scared, which just made it worse.  As things continued to get bad, I ended up going home early for Thanksgiving to be with my parents where I felt safe that they could care for me and get me to the best doctors.  My mom, even though she felt terrible herself, was in the car within thirty minutes ready to head to Arlington to bring me home.  She and my dad took turns taking care of me, driving me to doctors appointments, getting a CAT scan, etc.  Though you can’t officially diagnose a concussion, my symptoms all make sense and the tests have ruled out anything worse. 

I’m slowly getting better – I’m confused less often, less dizzy, and the “fog” in my head is going away for more hours of each day.  Even though it was a scary experience, it made me realize how thankful I am for a wonderful family.  My parents dropped everything and made sure I was OK.  Adam was and still is being absolutely supportive and kind as I recover.  Yes, it took me a few tries writing this because I can’t stare at a computer screen.  Yes, it means I will miss my final, awesome race in Las Vegas next week.  But at the same time, it made me realize how lucky I am.  As a 25 year-old, you start to get this crazy feeling that you can do it on your own.  You’re paying your own bills, living your own life, ready for anything.  But the second you’re terrified, there is nothing you want more than a hug from your parents to remind you that you’re safe and everything will be fine. 

Thank you all for understanding why our “grand finale” race won’t happen next week.  We’re still deciding if the rest of the family will go (someone would stay on the east coast to be near me – just in case).  That said, even though this blog is slightly behind, the Challenge will be a success!  I always had a weird feeling that something might happen (I thought injury, not concussion), so I planned 13 races for the year.  That means that I have now finished 11 half marathons and one full marathon, actually exceeding the goal for the year!  What a wonderful experience this has been and how lucky I feel to have been part of it.  More updates and thoughts to follow as I feel better, but thank you to everyone!

DC Walk to Cure Psoriasis

My parents came into town for the event!

It was finally here.  The DC Walk to Cure Psoriasis.  Technically, the event we have been fundraising for all year (though in reality, the event has stretched way beyond that, which is great!)  This was the time I would get to see the people I had met earlier at National Volunteer Leadership Conference, and remember why I’m running these races.  It was awesome!

 The event was on a Sunday, and I’d done a complicated series of races the day before  (I ran a 5K at 8:20 AM, then ran 1.4 miles uphill, and then ran a 10K at 9 AM).  But I made sure I wasn’t too tired on Sunday because I would be running a 5k to kick off the ceremony for the walk.   

 Dad came by after our races the day before

I was lucky to be joined by my dad and sister for the run so it was even better!  Though we may not have done exactly the 5k route because of some navigating issues (seriously, don’t ever listen to my directions), we did a similar route and headed back to cheers and posters from the crowd.  

Running in to kick off the stage presentation

I need to mention one group in particular here – the Alpha Phi Omega chapter.  When I arrived (before registration had even opened), they were smiling and working hard to set up the event.  When I got back from my run, they had these signs they had made to cheer me on!  Their energy was contagious, and I can’t thank them enough for what they did.

The signs and the Alpha Phi Omega team.  Thank you so much for your support!

 Then we got to the stage presentation.  Linda, who you’ve read about before quite a few times, was there leading the event.  As always, she did a wonderful job.  She is enthusiastic and it’s obvious how much she cares about helping people (as does everyone at NPF).  The organization realizes what a personal journey this is and goes above and beyond to take care of the emotional AND physical needs associated with psoriatic arthritis and psoriasis.  

Dan Farrington, the Chair of the NPF Board of Trustees even came to the event.  Great to see him again!

Julie Donaldson from SportsNet was the emcee, and it was great to have her out there with us.  We heard speeches from people who live with the disease daily.  Amy and Diane did a great job conveying the challenges but also sharing hope.  I think this was a great way for my mom to meet some other people who faced the same challenges she does regularly, and I highly encourage others who may be faced with psoriasis (or any disease really) to meet some people in their community who may be having a similar experience.  It’s very reassuring and helpful to know you’re not in it alone.

Julie Donaldson from SportsNet with Amy and Diane

 We heard from Caitlyn and Amanda, the two youth ambassadors from the walk, and from others.  

 

Caitlyn and Amanda, the youth ambassadors

There were awards for teams with the most people there (congrats to the American soccer team that won this), and I was presented with a generous gift card. 

 The American women's soccer team.  Look how many showed up!

I can’t wait to try Vespucci restaurant and am so appreciative of the generous gift card and your kind words.  Eventually, it was time to kick off the walk!

Thank you for my gift card to Vespucci.  Can't wait to try it!

Though we kicked off the walk, my family stayed back since my mom can’t walk that far.  We were able to see the teams returning and talk to them before heading out.  

 And the walk begins!

Thank you to everyone who made this event possible, especially Linda.  Her hard work for months leading up to this was pretty evident.  Awesome way to celebrate the year!