Putting Their Best Feet Forward
In December of 2015, my varsity cross country team traveled to Portland in order to compete in the Nike Cross Nationals. As we stepped to the line on that cold, rainy day, all we could think of was the hard work that we had put in to run in one of the most elite high school races in the country. We ran almost every day from June to December, and there were times where we were so tired, it felt impossible to run another mile. But in Portland, everything was finally worth it. Just like us, the members of Back on My Feet have days that they feel unable to wake up and run. Even though running is often not what they want to do at 5:30 in the morning, they wake up because by running a few miles a week, they are able to work up to the goals they set and the incentives that are set across the board. Due to the ever increasing amount of homeless Americans, Back on My Feet works to lower the rate of homelessness using running.
Many people would not pair running and philanthropy …show more content…
One woman, named Donna, completely turned her life around. She began Back on My Feet 5 months sober, and weighing in at over 500 pounds. She only joined because she “needed new sneaks”. Over time she met people who pushed her to stay away from drugs and instead inspired her to set goals. Donna was the first woman of Back on My Feet to run the half marathon. After, she was able to find a job at a rehab center and was able to break her alcohol and crack cocaine addictions. On her blog post she stated, “On May 4, 2014 I will be 2 years clean from a 28-year addiction of crack cocaine and 41 years of alcohol. I am now living alone for the first time in my life. I’m doing everything in life that I always wanted to do” (Philadelphia Blog). She was able to overcome huge obstacles that she would not have been able to without the help of the people of Back on My
In December of 2015, my varsity cross country team traveled to Portland in order to compete in the Nike Cross Nationals. As we stepped to the line on that cold, rainy day, all we could think of was the hard work that we had put in to run in one of the most elite high school races in the country. We ran almost every day from June to December, and there were times where we were so tired, it felt impossible to run another mile. But in Portland, everything was finally worth it. Just like us, the members of Back on My Feet have days that they feel unable to wake up and run. Even though running is often not what they want to do at 5:30 in the morning, they wake up because by running a few miles a week, they are able to work up to the goals they set and the incentives that are set across the board. Due to the ever increasing amount of homeless Americans, Back on My Feet works to lower the rate of homelessness using running.
Many people would not pair running and philanthropy …show more content…
One woman, named Donna, completely turned her life around. She began Back on My Feet 5 months sober, and weighing in at over 500 pounds. She only joined because she “needed new sneaks”. Over time she met people who pushed her to stay away from drugs and instead inspired her to set goals. Donna was the first woman of Back on My Feet to run the half marathon. After, she was able to find a job at a rehab center and was able to break her alcohol and crack cocaine addictions. On her blog post she stated, “On May 4, 2014 I will be 2 years clean from a 28-year addiction of crack cocaine and 41 years of alcohol. I am now living alone for the first time in my life. I’m doing everything in life that I always wanted to do” (Philadelphia Blog). She was able to overcome huge obstacles that she would not have been able to without the help of the people of Back on My