my blog

My sister Becki is busy these days scaling tall mountains, training for marathons, and working as the organizer the team running the Denver Marathon to raise $15,000 for the Easter Seals Day Stroke Program. Normally, you just run the Denver Marathon as a challenge to yourself, but when Becki started working with stroke survivors this past year, I could tell she was immediately inspired by the people at the program. The first story I remember Becki telling me was about a woman named Emily who had a stroke at 32, two days after she gave birth to her first child, a baby boy. After her stroke, one of Emily's first goals was to be able to hold her baby. Becki was in awe at the strength and courage Emily (and others at the program) held, and she soon started thinking about making this race about more than us reaching the finish line.

Becki made lots of phone calls and sent lots of emails, and after a lot of hard work, she finally got the stroke program approved as one of Denver Marathon's official Denver Marathon-recognized chartible organizations. She said that there are so many things out there that would improve the rehabilitation of the people she works with, but as is the case with many programs like this, there are always budget limitations.

In any case, my original purpose for writing this was because Becki came over to help me with my last-minute trunk show preparations tonight- in the midst of her busy schedule! Until I'd become a regular runner these past few months, I had NO idea of the time and commitment it takes to be active on a regular basis. I'm proud that she took on the job of being team organizer, and look forward to having more time to focus on the fundraising once I get back in town. Apparently I don't like relaxing, because I've decided that I'm going to have a Moonwater Designs jewelry auction to benefit the stroke program. Stay tuned!