Why I’m Running: ‘I am on a daily mission to help students’
"When I’m on my training runs, I think of all the MassBay students, alumni, and their families that I have been lucky enough to know."
In our “Why I’m Running” series, Boston Marathon runners share what’s inspiring them to make the 26.2-mile trek from Hopkinton to Boston. If you’re running the marathon, you can share your #WhyImRunningBoston story here.
Name: Liz Cooper
Age: 45
From: Needham
I will be running the 127th Boston Marathon to raise money for student scholarships at MassBay Community College. As a full-time employee at MassBay and mother of three small children, I have been inspired by our students’ dedication to their studies, but I have also witnessed the stress of having limited funds to reach their educational dreams.
I believe in the power of education and where it can take you in life and career. The funding of this scholarship will provide students with some financial relief. I hope and believe together we are stronger and we can elevate students to reach their potential. My mother, a first-generation community college graduate, is a huge motivating factor for this run and in my position at MassBay. I am on a daily mission to help students reach their goals in any way I can, having seen first-hand all the hard work my mom put into earning her degree while she was raising two small children. I know it wasn’t easy, but she pushed through and just like our students push through.
Many of our students are like my mom, returning to the classroom after taking time off, having small children, or balancing multiple jobs to make sacrifices that will pay off with an earned degree. When I’m on my training runs, I think of all the MassBay students, alumni, and their families that I have been lucky enough to know and cheer for during their educational journey and commencement ceremonies. I hope on April 17 I will see some of those same smiling faces on the marathon route, cheering me on.
Editor’s note: Entry may have been lightly edited for clarity or grammar.
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