Whitney

About eight years ago, I walked into the room my mother Marlene did her laundry in the house I grew up in Melrose Massachusetts.

As I entered the room, I noticed that she was fixated on a picture frame she placed on the top of the dryer. It was a picture of her mother affectionately known as “Peggy” who had passed away a few years prior from natural causes. As I rounded closer to my Mom, she had two small tears streaming down her cheeks. She reached out to me for a hug and we embraced. As I pushed back, as to connect with her face, I said to her, “You miss her greatly don’t you” not knowing at all what I was talking about, or the depth of that question for that matter.

 I was thirty-six and had never lost anyone or anything of any magnitude as of that encounter. It just seemed like a natural question. My Mom went on to explain to me that there had not been a day since her Mom’s passing that she did not want to reach for the phone to simply have one final quick conversation with her. “It’s so permanent”, my mom said. “ I asked another not knowing, “does it EVER get better?” My mom said it never did get any easier but she did take comfort in re-living all the memories, the laugh s and the “good times”.

Sadly, after six plus years, I know fully well as to what my mom was talking about!  We lost my Mom to colon cancer and that is when endurance sports began.

Cancer or loss of a loved one is difficult to put into words. It’s a walk that will happen for most of us at some point in our lives and some will face a good portion of their lives without the people they love. We live with the memories and hopefully each of us go on to create wonderful happy lives with the all the joy and enthusiasm our loved ones blessed us with. It still bugs me when I hear friends complain about their parents, because I would do anything to have that one last conversation!

Therefore, it was a “no brainer” and honor to race and compete for Whitney to be the recipient of my next Ironman medal on May 1^st in Utah.  I will write Whitney and Stacey’s name on my Newton Distance sneakers (www.newtonrunning.com) as a tribute to Whitney and her incredible life!

Please read below Stacey’s note to me about her friend Whitney. Thanks for the extra incentive and inspiration Whitney!!

From Stacey

“Hi, Mark;

Whitney and I met as freshmen at Mississippi State University in 1987 and pledged the same sorority - Zeta Tau Alpha. She is the best friend I could ever hope for. I am at her home in Atlanta right now as we are celebrating our 41st birthdays and prepping to run the ING Half Marathon on Sunday.

Whitney lost her mother when she was 28 after a 4-year battle with colon cancer.

Whitney lost her father to cancer just before her 38th birthday. Dealing with the loss of both of her parents truly broke her heart.

The reason I am a runner is because of her. She and I and 2 other sorority sisters decided a year ago to run our first half marathon together. Only one of us had ever run in any type of event and we trained for it in 6 weeks. All the while supporting and motivating each other. Since then we have run in 7 half marathons together and have all benefited so much from becoming runners.

Now at 41 Whitney is facing life without either parent or trying to stay motivated to stay healthy and in shape. She has struggled with injuries and a low HDL level that has slowed her metabolism and limited her weight loss. She is frustrated and was ready to give up running and weight training completely. I believe it is my role in her life to keep her focused and give her strength.

So, she is running with me on Sunday and motivating me to go for my 2-hour time goal as I encourage her to compete. When I saw your post regarding your medal I immediately thought what an impact you would have on her. To know that you are running for her...to see how far she has come...to see what it means to stay focused and continue with her fight to stay healthy......All that is represented in your medal.

She does not know about this. I want to surprise her. I would be honored if you would select her for your Utah race.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart”,

Stacey”