When I crossed the finish line of my first ever 5K in Michael's honor, I fought back a lot of tears. He had pushed me to victory. No, I didn't win the race nor did I even come close to first place, but he had gotten inside my heart and gave me the courage to finish! This was such an amazing feeling for me and very much indescribable. It was something I couldn't wrap my mind around - only the heart can understand something this dynamic. God had planted a bug in my head to get others involved so they, too, could feel exactly what I was feeling. I wanted to share the experience – but how would others receive it or even feel about it?
A good friend of mine, Yvonne Jones, asked if she could be paired up with someone and so Vice President Amy Courts paired her with Brooke, a wonderful young lady with autism (pictured below).
Even though Yvonne is still in the grips of tragedy, as she explains, her loving heart is always giving. "I love the fact that I can run for someone else. I, too, have a very awesome son, Nick, who had a swimmer paired up with him. Nick passed away 2 months ago. After he passed, I thought "what do I do with my life now that he is gone?"
Leanna Jackson, whose child is paired, says "I have spent five years not being taken seriously. My son looks, acts, seems completely normal. Sometimes things feel completely normal, which made me feel guilty, like we didn't have it bad enough to deserve to have someone run for him. It's been almost four years since he was in the hospital. He improved so much last year that his surgery was cancelled. [So] then I stopped and thought about it, I looked past my own truckload of guilt and remembered how this affects our lives on a daily basis [and] how he will be different from everyone for as long as he lives. I don't even know all the ways this will limit him [or] how the prayer we've received thus far has made all the difference; how to know that someone was thinking, for however many miles, of him... how even if I feel like I deserve nothing, he deserves all that, and more. All the hope and prayer we're fortunate enough to receive because [as] calm as things may seem sometimes, he is lucky, blessed, to be alive and when I accepted all that, I felt humbled, a lot less guilty, enormously grateful, and deeply honored."
And the honor is felt everywhere as, Julie Rager (our official cheerleader!) explains "When I first saw this site, I had a feeling deep down within me that this "family" was going to grow. I am so excited to see the progress of our entire family of 300 wonderful and very special people. This is a group that includes everyone in one way or another, that's why I call it a "Family." This group is inspiring with what they do or what they post. I find inspiration and I have a feeling of hope – a hope that anyone, whether you're a child or an adult, with a developmental or intellectual disability can be respected and well taken care of. Whether you are parents or siblings who have stepped up in taking care of your family, whether you are a support staff who just checks in once in awhile, or you have staff members there at all times in a 24-hour period, this site gives me hope that they will be treated with respect and dignity and to also have the same rights as everyone else and to be free from abuse and neglect. This site demonstrates that all human lives are to be respected. This site fills me up with love and I love to not just see the workout posts, but pictures of all of you athletes showing your love and support by honoring someone else. I love the posts that I see of family members or friends or staff where they offer positive support. I am telling you that I feel surrounded by love everytime I make a post. I was honored to be a part of this family by being nominated as your cheerleader. I am disabled, but I worked with adults that have developmental and intellectual disabilities for over 12 years. I miss seeing "my guys," as I always called them. The reason I felt so honored is because for the last couple of years I struggled with coming to terms with "slowing down." It was hard. I have always wanted to make a difference and when I saw this site, I knew that I wanted to somehow encourage all of the athletes. When I was mentioned to be nominated for being a cheerleader, I couldn't move fast enough to tell my husband. He said to me, "I haven't seen you smile like that in a long time." I was so happy that I was included. I take my 'job' very seriously."
It's not hard to see or hear why it is I do what I do, but I have to ask, who do YOU run for?
