Racing to Save Lives

Welcome to my Team In Training home page.

Once again, I'm training to participate in a half marathon 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. I am completing this event in honor of all individuals who are battling blood cancers. These people are the real heroes on our team, and we need your support to cross the ultimate finish line - a cure!

This is my second season with Team in Training and I am thrilled to continue to be a part of this fantastic organization. The event that I have chosen to train for is the San Diego Rock and Roll Half Marathon.

Please make a donation to support my participation in Team In Training and help advance LLS's mission. In addition to your donation, I will continue to need your prayers and encouragement to help me exceed my training and fundraising goals.

I hope you will visit my web site often. Be sure to check back frequently to see my progress. Thanks for your support!

Traci

3/12/10

It's been a busy week but training is going really well! Last weekend, we were scheduled to run 4 miles but when we reached the 4, my mentees were ready to keep going and we ended up going 5.5 miles. For most on our TEAM, that is the farthest they have ever gone and I am so proud of their dedication!

Also this week, I was able to contact my personal Honoree's sister, Shannon. Shannon has given me her blessing to dedicate this season to her sister and my friend Sharon Hess who lost her battle to leukemia 25 years ago. Thank you, Shannon for the honor of running in Sharon's memory.

I will continue to update as I progress in my training and fundraising. In the meantime, please forward my link to your friends and family so they can have the opportunity to donate to such an incredible organization.

Thank you for all your donations, encouragement, prayers and support.

Love to you all!

Traci

04/07/10

All:

I am 2 months out from my event. I will run the Rock and Roll Half Marathon in San Diego on June 6th and I am getting really excited. LLS is the primary beneficiary in this race so your donation dollars will get the maximum "bang for the buck". For those who don't know, the distance in a half marathon is 13.1 miles and yes, that is further than I drive in a day sometimes.

It has been an unusual season with the temperatures; one of our first long runs it was so cold that we had ice in our hair and on our clothes. The weather has finally warmed up around here but the wind in West Texas is unbelievable this spring. March roared in like a lion and is still roaring strong into April. Running into a 25 - 30 mph headwind will build character for sure! From my perspective, if the headwind is the worst thing I face today, it is absolutely nothing compared to what cancer patients and their families face every day; I will continue to run and they will carry me across the finish line.

Thanks for taking a few minutes to check in on my progress and feel free to check back soon. I will begin updating more frequently to let you all know how it's going.

Thank you for all that you do.

Love you guys!

Traci

04/23/10

I am just 7 weeks away from my event and training is right on schedule. I have such an awesome team to train with; everyone is out here with the same goals: to raise funds to find a cure for cancer and to complete our events in honor of all of those who are suffering or have suffered from this horrible disease.

This week we received the news that our Team's Honored Hero, Gail Martinez passed away. Gail served as our Team's Hero for several seasons as she bravely battled her illness. Her gentle presence is surely missed by all. Please take a moment to say a prayer for Gail's family and friends as they struggle with their loss.

It is my hope that one day, there will be a cure for cancer and that no other family must endure what so many have had to in the past with losing a loved one. Treatment has come a long way but there is still so much ground to cover before we can wipe it out completely! I met a wonderful lady, Debra, this week as our Team was having a fundraiser. She told us that she is a 10 year survivor of leukemia and that her daughter participated in Team in Training during her treatment. Debra was even able to go to San Diego to watch her daughter cross the finish line. She thanked us for what we do. I want to say "Thank you" to Debra for your brave fight and your inspiration to so many.

Because of Sharon, because of Gail and because of Debra I will keep on raisin' and runnin'.

Thanks for taking the time to read my updates and check back again soon for more.

Love to you all!

Traci

May 11, 2010

Well, I am 3 1/2 weeks away from my event and I am getting really excited. Training is going well and we had a great run this morning. It's gotten so hot here, we are considering always running before the sun comes up because once it does, it's blistering.

As you can see, I am sitting at close to 80% of my fundraising goal and I would love to surpass the goal that I have set. I did receive a wonderful Corporate Sponsorship from Darrin Black with Black Plumbing. Incredibly generous and appreciated beyond measure!

As it turns out this season, all of our local Team members will be running in San Diego so I will have lots of my running "family" there with me. Each member of the Team has worked hard to train and raise funds for the same cause; find a cure for cancer. What a wonderful group of people that I have been blessed to get to know.

I have received so many words of encouragement and I want you to know how much that means to me. There really are days that I don't want to get out in the wind and heat but I stop and think of all the patients who cannot and it helps me keep things in perspective. That is why I do this; because they cannot.

Thank you again for checking in on me and check back soon. I'll update again before the big event!

Love to you all!

Traci

05/20/10

Two weeks from tomorrow, I will head to San Diego with the Team so we can run our big event Sunday, June 6th. We are all so very excited about it.

I consider it an honor to participate in Team in Training and I consider it an honor to run on behalf of all the people who have suffered and are currently suffering from this disease.

I am really overwhelmed by the support that I have received from so many of you. A simple "Thanks" is not nearly enough but it is the best I can offer.

Training this week has been really good and I feel ready to hit the streets of San Diego in little more than two weeks.

I will give at least one more update before the race so please keep checking back on my progress.

Love to you all!

Traci

05/31/10

I am only 6 days away from my event and I am getting more excited by the day. The team will have "easy" runs this week so our bodies can be well rested for next Sunday. Easy means nothing over about 5 miles.

This past week has been a rollercoaster of emotions for me; stress, sadness, excitement and overwhelming joy. By far and large, the overwhelming joy wins out! So many of you have offered encouragement, prayers, donations and lots of confidence and it is what YOU do that truly makes a difference to this cause.

I wish you all a very blessed Memorial Day and please take a moment to give thanks to all who have made the ultimate sacrifice and all those who have been willing to do the same to protect our Country and our freedom.

Thankful for every one of you,

Traci

Post-Race

Hey, all!

I went on the trek to San Diego and ran the race. I have to say that the course was a bit more tough that I had expected but I still completed with a good finish time and no injuries!

What an honor it has been to run for others' benefit; I might very well have stopped had it not been for the thought of Sharon and Gail and their families.

Thank you to everyone who offered your support both financially and in prayer and thought. Some of you even made multiple donations and I was just blown away by that. I set my fundraising goal quite high this season and with your support, I was able to bypass it.

Trust that your donations truly are going to great cause.

I would like to offer a very special Thanks to Shannon Hess Terlop. I am so happy to have found you and remind you that Sharon has not and never will be forgotten. Thank you for allowing me the privilege of running in her memory.

I will close by saying that my simple "Thanks" is not nearly enough to express how I truly feel. I am deeply, eternally grateful and moved by everyone's love and generosity.

Thank you

Love to you all,

Traci