In February, I ran my first half-marathon in Chattanooga, TN with my buddy Tymm. Let's just say that somewhere between mile 11 and 13.1 (with my dog's barkin') I told myself that in the future, the only event that I would ever participate in that included the word "marathon" would be watching Jack Bauer in a "24" movie-marathon. We are "24" junkies you know. Even our GPS is named "Chloe". I digress...
Well, within a few days of completing Chattanooga, my ever-competitive nature had me itching for another half-marathon, at one point setting the goal to complete a race in every state.
A couple months ago I decided that I'd train to run in the Atlanta half-marathon on Thanksgiving day. I must say; however, that as Thanksgiving approached, I started to get nervous. I'd been a little busy over the last few weeks and the furthest I had run was a 10K.
I needed some motivation. I received all that I needed and more thanks to the
Brighton Kennedy Foundation The BKF focuses on orphans, which is near and dear to our hearts. Did you know that there are 147 million orphans worldwide? 147 Million! That is something to run for. Specifically, the BKF focuses on orphans in Ethiopia. It was founded by some good friends with amazing vision, passion, and hearts to make a difference. I was honored to wear a BKF shirt during my run Thanksgiving morning. It is our hope that many noticed the words "Fighting for Africa, One Orphan at a Time" on the back of my shirt as I made my way through the streets of the ATL. Hopefully they remembered it, and decided to check it out. Perhaps they'll choose to get involved somehow.
All and all, it was a fantastic event. I beat my Chattanooga time by a full minute and I felt great after the run. Most importantly, I ran with a purpose; for something that really matters, the orphans of Africa and of the world.
"Pure and undefiled religion before our God and Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained by the world." James 1:27
