Back in 2007, I really wanted to run my first ever marathon. Because I was new to it, I wanted to try Philadelphia to be close to home and to be more comfortable with the weather and the terrain. When I tried to sign up, I realized how quickly these popular races can sell out because registration closed before I even got to the website. It was then that I realized that you could run races for a charity to get entry into the race.
Although the minimum required to raise was high, I thought it was a really good idea and would motivate me to finish the race. I was directed to a little-known organization named Back On My Feet that began with an early morning run in Philadelphia. It was a newly started nonprofit to help the homeless and the addicted. The goal was to transform their lives and help people achieve self-sufficiency through the power of running, community, and support services.
Although the goals were lofty and the idea a bit extreme, it resonated with me. This is an idea and a mission that I could get behind. At the time, my oldest daughter was 2 and we just had a new baby girl a few months earlier. OK, probably not the best time to spend hours of my weekends running, but it was a great little escape and wasn’t too costly a hobby. Additionally, when my Noni had passed away, I made it my mission to exercise and stay healthy so that I could be around for her daughter and granddaughters.
I specifically remember the race, because only weeks before the race was set to go, I got a really bad case of Iliotibial band (ITB) syndrome, causing sharp pain on the outside of my left knee. I rested for almost a full week before the race, but the sharp pain began around mile three and continued the rest of the way. There is no doubt that Back On My Feet willed me to finish that race. The pain was almost numbing in the last 6 miles, and I was running almost entirely on my right leg, but I was going to finish for all those people who donated and for all those people who don’t have shoes and who have no place to go home to. Thus began, for me, a long career of road, bike and swim races.
One thing I remember fondly was seeing my nephew Joseph and my daughter Sophia a couple of times throughout the day. I still laugh every time I think about Joseph’s sign that just said EXERCISE! As I’d run by, they would yell it. It really still is funny.
Fast forward to 2026 and that same daughter that cheered me on as a 2-year-old has joined me in a couple of races over the last few years. We always make a day out of it and have fun. She is now a dual athlete in college, so when she joins me, my goal is to just try to keep up. We decided to run Broad Street this year. I thought it would be a good lesson for her to take what is typically a fun day and add the joy of giving back to others. Much to my excitement, Back On My Feet is still thriving, operating in 14 cities nationwide, and has been breaking cycles of poverty and addiction across the country.
We need to raise $1,000.00, but I feel we can do much better than that. I raised almost $2,000 back in 2007 and I am not nearly as pretty of energetic as Sophia. We really appreciate every dollar donated and promise to be out there on race day chasing each other down.
Sophia and I ran on Cinco de Mayo last year, hence the outfits,
Thank you!
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