‘I will be slow, but I will be out there accomplishing this goal’
"I will be thinking of my dad during my run, feeling the excitement and struggles of the course he once felt."
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: Christine Peecha
Age: 47
From: San Diego, Calif.
My dad ran the Boston Marathon in 1980. My parents owned a liquor store on the corner of Mass. Ave and Boylston, and I spent a lot of time in this area growing up. The marathon was a part of life!
My sister trained to run the marathon for the 40th anniversary of our dad running and in celebration of her 40th birthday. That was the year it was canceled. She decided to wait until 2022. When the race was on Patriots Day again, she ran as a fundraiser for Boston Medical Center.
While I was home visiting my family in 2021 for Thanksgiving, we lost my cousin Lauren to suicide. We are still devastated. I was happy to become a member of the BMC team and run with my sister to raise money for Boston Medical in hopes that just one person would benefit from their mental health services.
During my training in January of 2022, I fractured my femoral neck and had to have emergency surgery. After a long year of recovery, crutches, cane, aquatic physical therapy, regular physical therapy, zero gravity treadmill, good days, and bad days, I am training again for this year’s marathon. I’m back on the Boston Medical Fundraising Team and I’m proud to be raising funds for them.
I will be slow, but I will be out there accomplishing this goal. I will be thinking of my dad during my run, feeling the excitement and struggles of the course he once felt. I will also be thinking of Lauren and how much I miss her. I will be so proud to finally finish the race. Good luck to everyone running and go Team BMC!
Editor’s note: Entry may have been lightly edited for clarity or grammar.
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