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| Photo by Carla Garcia |
What really started to just be a simple run to honor those that were affected by the Boston Marathon
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| Photo by Carla Garcia |
bombings, became something very powerful and healing for those that came out to Memorial Park. Others participated in similar runs all over the Houston area. I am not sure exactly how many people ran today in unison, but it was in the hundreds!
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| Photo by Carla Garcia |
Shawn and I ventured out to Memorial Park really not knowing what to expect. What we found was pretty amazing. Several news trucks were out there to cover the run and I was fortunate to meet one of those that actually ran yesterday, Robert Mason. Robert was stopped at mile 24 and not able to finish. To know that we were running his final miles with him was very powerful for me.
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| Designed by Matthew Murphy |
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| Photo by Carla Garcia |
I had received calls from Fox, ABC, NBC, CBS, and Telumundo that were wanting to get information about the run that we put together. They were most interested in why we were doing it and the significance of the bib that we symbolically wore.
Ultimately it was not about Shawn's Ironman, Kona Inspired, or even Shawn's Anomaly. This was about the families affected by the terroristic act and how we decided to "March On" to pay tribute to those families. We let the terrorist know that we were not phased by their cowardly attempt to scare us. Even though it was 3 miles, it meant so much to all of us that ran.
Even though there are a lot of runners in Houston, we are a very close community. If one of us is hurt, we all feel the pain. I can't tell you how many times that I got through an event because I knew that my family was waiting for me at the finish. I can't imagine what it is like to go through what those runners are going through right now knowing that their family and friends that were injured or lost their life were to support them as they were living life to it fullest.
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| Photo by Carla Garcia |
4:10:00 is the approximate time the bombs went off. That is pretty much the exact time I would have finished this race if I would have been in it. If it were not for injury, I may have been in it, and my family, Rachel, and even Shawn could have been a victim. That hits me harder than you may realize. This tribute run was a healing run for me as well. I have always used running as a chance to step away from everyday life for a few minutes to clear my mind and refocus. This happened tonight but I also got to enjoy it with some amazing people.
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| Photo by Carla Garcia |
Thank all of you for coming out and taking part of this run. I hope it meant as much to you as it did to me. In the words of Robert Mason, "(We) will not be intimidated by terror!" We will march on!
