Thank You!

Dear Friends and Supporters,

I am pleased to announce that I completed the Boston Marathon, and to my delight I finished with a time of 3:55:14. Thank you very much for your support over the last six months!

With your generous donations, we raised a jaw dropping, amazing $6,448!!! Thank you again for your donations! And please know that your donation does not lose it’s impact with the fading aches of my marathon victory! You have helped change the lives of hard working Boston & Worcester students.

This has been a difficult year for fundraising. Fundraising for the marathon teams has been down, but Team Go Far was successful, and raised over $75,000. Thanks to your incredible support, Bottom Line is GROWING next year, and will be supporting 1400 students in Massachusetts. They are motivated, and they know how important education is for their future. Bottom Line will provide that support thanks to you. 1 in 4 college-bound students in Boston will work with Bottom Line next year thanks to you. Students in Bottom Line will graduate from college at THREE TIMES the rate of their peers thanks to you.

Congratulations to Rick Stecchi, the “Guess My Time 50/50” winner! Rick submitted his confidence in my marathon ability on January 26th, when he entered a few chances on the board. I’m not sure I had any confidence at that time so thank you to everyone that helped get me here!

To all the curious running supporters, my 5K splits are as follows



Looks like I ran the Boston Marathon correctly? Slow and Steady with a patient pace for the first 5 miles.

The race was spectacular! I came off a well-rested week of taper training and a successful Marathon Spirit week. The April weather held off, and we had ideal running conditions, mid 50s, cloudy, with peaking sunshine. My parents drove me to the Hopkinton State park in the morning, where I met Team Go Far and the other 26,000 runners. It was an awesome sight, from the crowded Athlete’s village, the voice of Bob Lobel, the Jet flyover, packed streets of Hopkinton center, I had finally arrived at the Boston Marathon.

As I strolled down the .7 miles from Athlete’s village to the starting line, I bumped into Bert Bair, another Gyrus ACMI employee from Oregon that qualified for the marathon! I moved into my specific corral zone with fellow Go Far Team member and GFRC runner, Linda York, we both made light conversation with our neighbors, as we stood elbow to elbow. Since I could peak over several of the runners, I soaked in the scene of the 3000 runners waiting behind me. A few rows back, I yelled out to Chip O’Toole, a Liver foundation runner, and husband of my colleague Erica O’Toole. It was amazing that with over 26,000 runners and a million spectators, I had the chance to run into fellow training friends all along the way!

Around 10:30AM, the Boston Marathon started for me and the rest of the wave 2 – yellow-bibbed runners. I ran with my iPod to monitor my pace, but skipped on the headphones and marching band music. The first mile flew by, and I thought in my head only 25.2 miles left, but I’m already 30 seconds behind pace! Most of my thoughts throughout the sub 4-hour marathon included pace monitoring and friend searching.
I tagged my name on my shirt, and thanked everyone with a smile or nod when I heard it along the course. It was very encouraging and helpful when I climbing the Newton hills or struggling in the last three miles!
I had the pleasure of running into several training partners along the route, and stopped for encouragement when I spotted my parents, colleagues, and friends. Thank you so much to everyone that came out to support me along the course!! Overall, I felt “great” and in good spirits for the marathon. My foot arch pain did not bother me at all, however, the pain “that I’ve never felt before in my life” creped up around Mile 23. With only 3 miles to go, a short easy run during my training schedule, I took my last fuel gels with water, and vowed to run without stopping until the end. The pain was getting progressively worse, and my new goal is to run a marathon with working legs at the end! A young girl yelled out to me – “Hey I’m a Bottom Line student! Thanks Katie!” It sounded as if she was surprised to see someone running for Bottom Line, but I turned around, and smiled. It was a perfect time to be reminded why I was pushing myself so hard. With about 1.5 miles left, I glanced at my watch. All logic said that I would finish under 4 hours, but my legs had to understand they were on board for what my head wanted to do from now on! I powered forward, stopped again for more water, then pushed up the last hill of Hereford Street, turning the Left onto Boylston Street and took a minute to soak it all in. I could see the finish line, the cheers were so loud and the sidewalks were so packed I could not recognize the Copley area. The 100 yard dash never seemed so long, and I could not quite locate my “kick” with my tightening hamstrings and calf muscles! I looked up at the bleacher seats to wave at my parents – both cheering on their feet. I focused back on the finish line, I heard the announcer say, “All runners coming in now, Congratulations, you’re going to beat the 4 hour mark.” I took a deep breath, smiled, and lightly moved my feet faster toward the historic finish line.

Thank you for helping propel me toward the start and finish line of the Boston Marathon!
Upon finishing the marathon, I received my medal. I wore it to bed on Monday night and haven’t taken it off yet!

I sincerely thank you for your help!