A MESSAGE FROM Michael Asterino’s Fundraising Page
Running for GLASA — A New Chapter in a Familiar Mission
For the past several years, I’ve had the privilege of running the New York City Marathon as a charity runner for Special Olympics New York. Over those years, I raised over $13,500 to help bring the transformative power of sport to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. It became one of the most meaningful things I’ve done, not just as a runner, but as a person.
This year, I’m running the Chicago Marathon, and it felt like the right moment to find a new organization to champion. When I discovered GLASA (Great Lakes Adaptive Sports Association), I knew immediately it was the right fit. Their mission is different in focus but identical in spirit: make sure no one sits on the sidelines. GLASA serves youth, adults, and injured military with physical and visual disabilities, giving them access to the kind of athletic community that so many of us take for granted.
And I don’t take it for granted, because I know what it gave me. Growing up, sports were the backdrop of my life. My brother and I competed. My dad and his brothers competed. I learned more on fields and courts than I ever realized at the time. Dedication, grit, how to push through something hard, how to win with humility and lose with dignity. I made friendships that only come from chasing a shared goal. I didn’t know I was being shaped. I thought I was just playing.
That’s exactly what GLASA gives their athletes. Not just games, but growth. And that’s why I’m asking for your support.
Any contribution you make goes directly toward ensuring that people with physical and visual disabilities have access to the same opportunities that helped make me who I am. I’d be honored to carry your generosity across the finish line in Chicago.
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