The Honolulu Marathon and Katie Save
My niece, Elnaz aka Ellie, is in Hawaii, and sent me a bunch of photos which I’m
sharing here. The hotel upgraded her room to an ocean view because she was participating
in the Honolulu Marathon. The reason she is there is a friend of hers committed
suicide due to mental health issues. Her parents set up a charity called KatieSave. My Niece is helping raise funds for the charity to bring awareness about anxiety,
depression, and mental health issues among students. A bunch of us are making
donations based on each mile Ellie ran.
The first day, she took some pictures
and basically crashed. She usually zonks out on an airplane, but she said that there was a father/daughter duo, the girl had too much to drink, and talked loud as Ellie learned about her entire life story. Then the two people seated next to her had to constantly pee, and she had to keep getting up. So, yeah. No peace for her until she got to her hotel.
On Sunday, December 10, in honor of the marathon, Honolulu started with fireworks at 4 a.m. before the start of the event at 5:30. Ellie sent me a link, and shared her location as she ran. I’m not a morning person, but got up early to support her. She ran at a comfortable pace. Her goal was not so much to win, but rather to start, enjoy the journey, finish, and raise funds.
About 8 miles before the finish line, she texted me and said that she was dying. I threw numbers at her about how close she was to finishing. The last mile and a half were super hard because it was all uphill. Imagine running for 24.5 miles, and all the sudden you must run uphill. But she made it, and at the end, she was both exhausted and excited that she did it. Now it's time for all of us to pay up, in memory of Katie.
2 comments:
Well written in capturing every detail, expressing thoughts, and sharing feelings throughout the marathon journey. Big cheers to Ellie, an amazing athlete! We're all in for supporting mental health on behalf of her friend!
Hi. It makes me happy that you enjoyed this post. Thank you for your encouraging comment about Ellie, and your support for her cause. Mental health is a big issue in our society today, and it's important for people to know that they're not alone.
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