Teams are made up of individuals. Without them, there is no team. Or, as we in the Navy often say, "There is no 'I' in team, but there is an 'm-e' " And this 'm-e' is about to run farther than she ever has in her life - 26.2 miles. And not just any marathon, the Marine Corps Marathon.

If I'm going to do something this crazy, I might as well combine it with raising money for a good cause, right?

So, welcome to my Team In Training home page (below is the boilerplate, because it's a better explaination than the one I would write anyway...)

I’m participating in the Marine Corps Marathon as a member of The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) Team In Training. 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.

(End boilerplate)

This really is personal for me. I've watched several friends who have helped their children fight childhood blood cancers and I supported a co-worker as her husband of less than two years discovered, fought and lost his life to leukemia. I've raised money in the past for Breast Cancer through Races for the Cure and for the Cancer Society's Relay for Life with the crew of my ship in Texas. Now it's time to try and do some more good. I hate asking people for money, but this is a great cause and anything you can donate will motivate me and more importantly, improve someone's life - maybe that of someone close to you.

Shanti

P.S. I was going to offer to make a running tutu with a wisp of tulle for every person who donated $100 or more, but will make this offer instead - donate $100 or more and I'll wear a ribbon with your name (or the name of someone you'd like to honor) on it while I run.