Save the Papas!

You may or may not know that I am most certainly not a runner. I never have been, and I truly never thought I would be. But there’s something about running for a good cause that can really light a fire under a lazy bum. Whether or not you believe in fate, I’m fairly certain something like it played a role in the day I went to treat myself to running shoes. When checking out I asked about any running groups that would be good for somebody only just starting out and was handed a brochure about Team in Training. As it turns out, that night was the final informational meeting before the very first group practice that Saturday. A quick glance at the brochure told me that Team In Training was a group of people training and running marathons to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. In just five minutes I went from a complete novice looking for a running group to a future marathoner. And here is where you come in.

If you were fortunate enough to have known my incredible papa, Sam Simon, in person or have only known him through my family’s endless stories, you probably know that we lost him to lymphoma. Even when he was at his absolute weakest, he still managed his usual sparkle and a good joke. He was truly the greatest papa a girl could ever hope for, and now I am running a marathon as a way of honoring his memory by doing something positive (his preference always) and to help others suffering from this horrible disease. I’m calling this my run to “Save the Papas!”

The marathon I’ll be running is the Nashville Country Music Marathon on April 25th. That’s 26.2 miles of music, cheerleaders, and a whole lot of support. I may be running, walking, or crawling to the finish but I promise I’ll get there with your help. I feel a bit like PBS, but I like that they thank their supporters at different levels. Here’s my own little way of saying thank you for helping me Save the Papas! If you donate more than $100 I’ll send you your own personal photo of me running/walking/crawling/scraping my way across the finish line that’s sure to provide hours of laughs at my expense. If you donate $75 or more, I’ll send you a ribbon to write the name of somebody you’d like me to run in memory or in honor of on race day. I’ll attach these ribbons to the singlet I’ll be wearing so they can be there in spirit as well. But please know donations both large and small will help to make a difference.

Please give as generously as you’re comfortable doing and keep up with the training progress on my blog erinpriddy.blogspot.com.

Thanks for your support!