Dan Mees is running for his neighbor with inoperable childhood cancer

"They have had too many days in the hospital, too many Medevac flights, and too much disruption to bear."

Dan Mees is running the Boston Marathon to support children with cancer. Dan Mees

February 27, 2020

1 minute to read

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: Dan Mees
Age: 55
From: Andover, Massachusetts

Six years ago, my beloved brother Jim died of pancreatic cancer. The day of his funeral service, my nephews Chris and Geoff encouraged me to run my first marathon in his honor, something I have gladly done for him and my father, another cancer casualty, every year since. My steps have been lightened by running for others, and I am proud to have run the Big Sur Marathon, NYC Marathon, and Boston Marathon for cancer charities.

On April 20th, I will be running my second successive Boston Marathon for One Mission, a great charity that does “whatever it takes” to get kids through cancer treatment. One Mission serves numerous Boston-area hospitals and does so many little things right, because the woman who founded it had a child with cancer and experienced, and remembered, it all: the hardship of having to pay for parking when your child is in the hospital for months on end; the lack of fun things for kids to do while in the hospital; even getting a break from hospital food. One Mission is there every step of the way, helping kids and their families feel human and empowered during their fight against cancer, their own personal marathons.

So I run. This year, I am running for my neighbor Johnny, a great little boy with an inoperable brain tumor, and his valiant family. They have had too many days in the hospital, too many Medevac flights, and too much disruption to bear. But Johnny’s megawatt smile is always at the ready, as are those of his beautiful sisters and adoring parents.

I am also running for Alexandra Pacher, a young girl from Franklin, Mass. who lost her cancer fight in 2012. I never met her, but wish I did. I will be thinking of her every mile.

Editor’s note: Entry may have been lightly edited for clarity or grammar.