Welcome to my Team In Training home page!

As many of you know, I have been a runner for a big chunk of my life. From 7th grade track to cross country in high school, I've always enjoyed running. After college, I bumped up to some longer distances and ran 2 marathons. Then life got busy - and after moves to New Jersey and now Chicago, I got out of shape and put on a few more LB's than I'd care to admit :). The biggest thing - now that I'm a father, I've got a different perspective on life, and it seems like a good time to make some positive changes for myself and for others! I participated in an activity where I walked up 80 flights of stairs while carrying Brady - that was a good start! So what was the next thing?

I found a great option when I moved to Chicago - Team in Training. I knew about TNT before and learned more at an information session at work for KPMG. It's a great organization - they help one person achieve an accomplishment (training for an endurance event) and turn it into another positive. That positive is work for another cause - fundraising for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

LLS does so many things, but the short description is that it's an organization doing anything possible to fight blood cancers. That's anything from funding research for a cure to supporting patients and their families with these illnesses to promoting public awareness.

In the small time I've learned about LLS & TNT, I've been horrified by the pain these diseases cause not only those who have a form of blood cancer, but their families as well. But I've also been amazed at the positive outlook that so many of those families display in the face of adversity and the stories of perseverance in fighting and beating cancer! The stories of children with these illnesses was particularly poignant - as new parents, Katie and I are so happy Brady is healthy, and we'd want to do anything to help a child who is fighting cancer.

I don't have a direct connection to leukemia or lymphoma - many of the people I train with don't. I have had family members succumb to cancer, most notably my Aunt Sally who was a constant presence in the lives of me, my brother and my sister before she died far too young. I think of her the most with regards to this "project" of mine.

Like the other members of TNT, I will be raising funds to help find cures and better treatments for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and myeloma. I’m improving the quality of my life by participating and with your support, I can help improve the quality of life for patients and their families as well.

Please make a donation in support of my efforts with Team In Training and help advance the research for cures. Even a small amount is appreciated - anything to help me meet my goals and to help the battle against cancer! Thank you!

I started out small - running about 30 minutes tops. That was easy, well now - 3 months later - I'm up to 18 miles, only 2 miles from my longest run. For anyone with interest in how I'm doing so far - here's the link to the spreadsheet I use to track my training progress.

-Charlie