This year, I will be running the Honolulu Marathon on December 9, 2012 as a member of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's (LLS) Team In Training. All of us on Team In Training are raising funds to help stop leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma and myeloma from taking more lives.

It is my goal this year to raise $2,620 for the Leukemia Society - that's $100 per mile. (Yup, a marathon is 26.2 miles! I know, it's kinda crazy.) Over the past 7 years I've run for Team in Training, I've seen what a personal impact the funds we raise have on the quality of life of people battling blood cancers.

This season, I will be running in honor of one of the sweetest and most selfless people I know. Wayne is a survivor and one of our team's honorees and he shows up every single week to work the "aid station" for my teammates and I, cheering us on every step of the way. The photo below was from our 2010 season when we got to bring Wayne up with us to San Francisco for the Nike Women's half marathon - his first time to SF! (We were excited to take him on his first cable car ride!)

And as always, I run in memory of my friend, John Kark, who has been an inspiration to me throughout my involvement with TNT and who passed away in April 2010 after his second battle with Leukemia. Wayne, John (and people in communities everywhere just like them) are the real heroes on our team, and we need your support to cross the ultimate finish line - a cure!

Please consider making a donation to support my participation in Team In Training and help advance LLS's mission. Any amount, big or small, will help! You can keep up with my training and fundraising events by subscribing to my blog at http://runnersparadise.wordpress.com.

Thanks for all your support!