In October of 2005, I lost a great friend to Hodgkin's Lymphoma.

I met Steve Bouvier in 7th grade. We were in all the same nerdy classes together. From teasing and taunting was born a great friendship, and I don't have many memories of growing up that don't include 'Bouv'. He was one of those friends you hang on to.

Steve battled cancer for over four years. When he first got sick, we were calmed by good statistics and cure rates - in that first year and a half or so, we thought he had it beat. Unfortunately, it was just the beginning of a really long battle. Bouv underwent bone marrow transplants, chemo, and a few new/experimental procedures. He married Jeanne in a little ceremony in his beloved Vermont. He got better and he got worse. We got the news that October that there would be no more treatments  and when we lost Bouv, he had just turned 29.

Between then and 2009, I ran three marathons with Team in Training, and raised over $20,000. As many of you know, my last three marathon efforts were thwarted by dreaded stress fractures. I don't do anything half-assed and managed to land myself with not one, not two, but *three* fractures across both legs. It left me discouraged and I stopped running except for the occasional loop in the park or along the boardwalk.

I went for a walk this morning, and maybe it was the ocean air that went to my head, but it’s time to get back to it.

Over the next 5 months, I will be training for the Seattle Rock n' Roll Marathon and between now and June 1st, it is my goal to surpass the amount of money I raised in my very first marathon and raise at least $10,500 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

I still contend that I am NOT a runner, and yet this is the fourth marathon I will run in Bouv's memory to raise money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma society. Running does not come easily to me but having this cause and Bouv in my mind makes the miles pass a little more swiftly.

The mission of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society is to cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families. Every donation is tax deductible, and much of the research into new procedures and treatments directly benefit curing all forms of cancer, not just blood cancers - so your donations really do make a difference in so many ways.

As usual I will be documenting my training at girlyoubetterrun.blogspot.com and facebook.com/RunRoxRun. Thank you so much for your support!