2022 Challenge: Coach Liz Runs 1 Marathon a Month to Raise Awareness of Orgs Focusing on Equity and Justice
February 27, 2022: Dear friends, I started this coaching business to blend my love of running and my passion for justice and change (in individual lives, in our communities, and in our world). In this spirit, I’ve set a 2022 challenge for myself: Each month, outside of my regular running, I will run one 26.2 (marathon distance) run in honor of an organization operating in the Boston area that supports one or more of the key issues I am passionate about: racial justice/anti racism; gender equity/women’s rights; survivors of sexual assault; affordable housing and homelessness; destigmatizing mental health; immigration reform/immigrant/refugee rights; LGBTQIA issues; culture and arts in service to justice. I hope that my monthly journeys bring attention to organizations in the Boston area doing work around equity, diversity, and justice.
So how has it been going so far? Pretty well!
On February 26, 2022 in the clear, bright cold of a post snowstorm day I ran 26.2 miles back and forth on the Boston Marathon route up and down all of the infamous hills, to amplify the work of Wellness Collaborative, a nonprofit that provides an innovative solution to eliminating health care disparities. My January marathon distance (run in the early hours of a Friday before my work day started) focused on Boston Healthcare for the Homeless, which provides health services to over 11,000 people each year. Future organizations I plan to highlight include Jane Doe, Inc., the Cambridge Women’s Center, and The Welcome Project. Suggestions are welcome! Bonus points for organizations taking an intersectional approach!
I’m gearing up for the next 26.2 in late March and then will count my April Boston Marathon as my April run….I would be thrilled to have members of the running community join me on these runs and would be even more thrilled if members of the running community would check out and help lift up the work of the organizations I will run for. If you are into hashtags please use #LizRuns20224aCause on social media.
Happy running all!