This past year has been hard for our family. Through all of it, though, we’ve tried to keep perspective: even on our hardest days, there are families carrying things that are unimaginably heavier. When I started training for a marathon, I joked that I quite literally needed to run from my problems. I started calling it my Run From My Problems Club on social media, and somewhere along the way, running became an outlet I didn’t know I needed.
But the more miles I ran, the more I realized something: if I’m going to run from my problems, I want to run toward something good, too. So I sat down with my family and we talked about what that “something good” should be. The answer was easy: kids. That’s why I’m turning my marathon training into a fundraiser for Blood Cancer United’s Dare to Dream Project, helping create safer treatments and brighter futures for children with blood cancer.
Over the past year, so many people in our community have asked us, “How can we help you guys?” And our answer has always been the same: this platform and the people who have chosen to be part of our lives have given our family opportunities and support we will never take for granted. We have people in our corner. But there are families walking through the hardest days of their lives who need people in their corner, too. So if you’ve ever asked how you can help us, this is my answer: Help me help them.
I started running because I needed somewhere to put the hard things. Now, every training run, every hard mile, and eventually all 26.2 of them can mean something bigger. I dare to run so they can Dare to Dream.
Because kids should get to dream about what they want to be when they grow up. They should get to dream about birthday parties and first days of school and making the team and going to college and all the wonderfully ordinary things that make up a childhood. They should get to dream about their futures.
And I don't want to do this alone.
If you've ever joked that you want to join my Run From Your Problems Club, consider this your official invitation. Find a race this October. A 5K. A 10K. A half marathon. A marathon. Pick the distance that feels a little scary, lace up your shoes, and run with me…from wherever you are. Because maybe we can take all the things we're running from and turn them into something worth running for.
Together, we can make the Run From Your Problems Club a team running for kids. We can train together, share our miles, encourage each other through the runs we absolutely do not want to do, and collectively raise money for Blood Cancer United's Dare to Dream Project.
Your race doesn't have to be my race.
Your distance doesn't have to be my distance.
You don't even have to consider yourself a runner yet.
This October, I dare you to run with me, so kids with blood cancer can Dare to Dream.
Let's see what happens when a whole lot of people running (or casual walking) from their problems decide to run toward something good.