Friends, This spring, I am running the Boston Marathon to support research at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. I would appreciate your support. In the fall of 2000, I had just finished my first day of my teaching career when I received news that the abnormalities discovered in a recent chest x-ray were likely indications of lymphoma. I immediately was taken in for a biopsy. Though I was diagnosed with Stage IIA Hodgkins Lymphoma, I was lucky to find that my prognosis was excellent. With chemotherapy and radiation, I would survive a threat that only 30 years earlier would often have been terminal. The care I received at the Dana in Boston included not just oncology, but support for me and for my family in survivorship and ongoing health. For 25 years, runners in the Boston Marathon have raised money for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. In 2014, I hope to run in support of innovative basic cancer research through the Claudia Adams Barr Program. This is really important work to develop targeted cancer treatment. The program has produced advances in molecular treatments that are effective against aggressive forms of cancer and cause fewer side effects. My personal ties to the Boston Marathon run deep. As a kid growing up in Boston, I experienced the Marathon as a community event; schools were closed for a week (yes, a week!), and the April holiday signaled the arrival of spring and of my birthday. Everyone in Boston celebrated the day-long event. In 1912 and 1913 my great grandfather ran Boston, after making the journey from New Jersey via streetcar. In 1995, I supported my mom and uncle as they retraced their ancestors footsteps. I ran the last 8 miles with them as they descended from Newton toward the tall buildings of the Back Bay. This past spring, when I heard the news of the Marathon bombings, I quickly learned that my family was okay. My brother, sister, and niece had passed the site a short while earlier as they departed Fenway Park following a dramatic Red Sox victory. The next week was a scary one, as the city was shut down and the surreal events of finding the culprits unfolded. As I followed the Red Sox on their unlikely path to the championship that ended this season, I gained resolve to make my own contribution to my hometown through fundraising and running in the Boston Marathon. For me, doing this means coming full circle in several ways. It means renewing the celebration of Marathon Monday after the sad and scary events of this past April. It means giving back to the people at the Dana who cared for me by contributing to their future research. It also means making a run along a path that has personal and family history. Some friends have already offered to help; when one friend heard I was thinking about running, he encouraged me, made a pledge, and offered to make a training run with me when we are in Boston for NSTA a few weeks before the Marathon. A colleague has offered to help with my training, as he will be running too. (He qualified based on time!) The response Ive already received is truly touching; without it, Im not sure I would have made the 2014 team! If you are able, please make a donation and support my application to the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge. My goal is to raise $10,000 — very ambitious, but just over twice the minimum amount required to qualify for the team, and only a little over the average fundraising mark. I will need a LOT of help! You can learn more and donate on my fundraising page: runDFMC.org/2014/mattaw I will also blog during my journey of fundraising and training for Boston, so please check it out: runwithaw.tumblr Best regards, and thanks for your support! Matt
Posted on: Thu, 05 Dec 2013 03:32:43 +0000