Schedule Update – December 11

greenglove — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 21:56:29 +0000

It’s now been nearly 2 weeks since the Seattle Half Marathon…

It’s kind of a nice place to be…you should be close to recovery… enjoying a little extra time…immersed in holiday cheer…and hopefully still floating on some of your big accomplishment high!

…and why not? Race day was an amazing day…from our gathering at 6:45am to take a team picture to the crowded energy and buzz of the start line to winding through the dreary…yet somehow adrenaline-pumping… streets of Seattle to celebrating with your teammates in the Victory Recovery Area to the spectacular post-race party where I got hear all about your experiences and plans for the upcoming year…It really was an awesome day!

And…while I was busy mingling at the party…trying to touch base with all of you….I found myself talking to one of our new members who was quick to tell me how much she enjoyed the training and the event and getting to know everyone…She said that she felt like she’d discovered a whole new kind of crazy! A kind of crazy that involves getting out of bed early on Saturday mornings to train; learning to tolerate Gatorade and Power Gels; allowing Thanksgiving weekend to be swallowed up not with a 20# bird, but by a 13.1 mile running/walking event that wound its way through some of the hilliest streets in Seattle on what was predictably a chilly, wet, dreary day.

But as crazy as all of that is…I think there’s yet another kind of crazy we should recognize here. It’s all of the crazy things that this team accomplishes every day….the unexpected…those things that take people by surprise and change the way they view the world…that people hear about and say…Crazy! I can’t believe it! Things like…you had a transplant? and you say you just did a half marathon? huuhh…It didn’t take you all day? your family joined you? you trained with other people who’d had transplants?? and you lost 10 pounds? your blood pressure improved? …excuse me…did you just say it was fun??! That’s CRAZY!!!

Honestly…the world could use more of that kind of crazy….more defying the odds..more working together…more believing in the power of teamwork…more encouragement…more appreciation…and more just getting out there to give it a try! Each one of you I’m sure has had some doubts about what you were doing at some point…if not this year…11 years ago…and it’s easy to think that you hung in there because you wanted to tell people that you ‘d done a half marathon…but really I think a big part of it was because you found that you were improving and getting stronger…. learning new things and feeling better about yourself….getting to know new people and investing in their lives….and being willing to step out and take those kinds of risks…well…it’s true…it’s just plain crazy!

And when it gets right down to it…we’ve got a lot of examples of crazy on our team…just take a look…
•   Of the 20 UWMC transplant recipients participated in the 2011 Seattle Marathon events…3 had received their transplants in the last year: Gloria Roberts, Greg Eisen, and John Martinez
•   Our top runner, Alvin Valencia who was on track to run the race with us, was called in for a kidney transplant 2 weeks before the event…so he sat this one out.
•   All totalled, the 20 transplant recipients who joined us for our post-race festivities, had together completed over 140 half marathons!
•   In the 11 years of Team Transplant, 80 transplant recipients and donors have participated on the team!
•   The training is becoming a family affair with Rachel and Chaz (Chuck) Bauman, Patrick (Mark) Scott, and Corey (Pam Magnuson) Anderson all joining in along with us!
•   Mark Rosinbum and Tami Sadusky have been doing this for eleven years!
•   Carla Trulson Essenberg walked a 5k in Hawaii last month…while on VACATION!
•   You want to stay involved with the team even when you have reasons that you can’t train…Jonathon Baird, Turner Prewitt, Ron Adkins, and Shari Jones!
•   This thriving business…it’s not just about running and walking half marathons….IN ADDITION to running and walking half marathons….It may include baseball (Mari Jo Fraser) or hockey (Sam Patterson) or playing the accordion (Maggie Kim) or bowling (Allen Vary)!!
•   You’ll even make the effort to travel to events and team practices…Dan Tenant (Tacoma); Jason Stahl (Olympia) and who could forget Lenard Yen and his long journey from Vashon Island!
•   …and you’re making new friends and building a community of support around you that encourages your healthy lifestyle…Micah Gwinn, Lenore and Steve Miller; Vanessa Whitacre and Colin Rines; and TEAM HOPE!

Thanks to all of you…It was a wonderful season…an incredible year…and I think that what we’re doing really does make people step back and adjust their views on organ donation and diet and exercise…It’s pretty remarkable all that we’ve accomplished…and as one of the people who’s been around for the full 11 years of Team Transplant…I can tell you….it really is pretty crazy!

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And some more thank yous….
Everyone who volunteered at the expo...Sam Patterson, Marty Chakoian, Sam Patterson, Susan Marx, Shari Jones, Mary Meister, Allen Vary, Cindy Weber, Dan Tenant, and Jason Stahl!

Our Roanoke Cheerleaders…Mikki Dailey, Susan Bussell, and Luann Majeed!

Our Half Marathon Finisher Recovery Sepcialists who took charge of our table in the Victory Recovery Area….Ida Boecksteigel and Ron Adkins...

Our post-race party planners….Janette Morantes, Tami Sadusky, Susan Marx, and Jonathon Baird for his fabulous gluten-free desserts!

Homeland Security for their faithful Saturday morning support...Janette Morantes, Tamar Solomon, Susan Bussell, and Julie Sprinkle

Everyone else on our planning committe who have provided such incredible assistance throughout the years: Annie Otto, Ron Adkins, Ida Boecksteigel, Mikki Dailey, and Mark Rosinbum!

And finally…a really big thank you from me to all of you for the generous gift…The chair is absolutely beautiful and I look forward to finding the perfect place for it in my house! Thanks to all of you, my home has become a very warm and comfortable place…full of incredibly inspriring and wonderfully crazy memories!

***…and a quick disclaimer…if I missed someone in here, please let me know…I want you to make sure you know ho w much we appreciate your help!****
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Future Plans…
•   The Seattle Rock’n Roll Half Marathon is June 23rd…http://runrocknroll.competitor.com/seattle
•   Big Backyard 5K Who Knows Their Fitness Team Challenge is May 20th…http://www.bby5k.com/
•   Be prepared to kick up the training again in March…you know I’ll be in touch!

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From the News Desk…
Exercise and Brain Power!

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com:80/2011/11/30/how-exercise-benefits-the-brain/?emc=eta1

Calories burned: Walking vs. Running

http://m.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-242-304-311-8402-0,00.html

Fitness vs. Weight loss?

http://health.usnews.com/health-news/family-health/heart/articles/2011/12/05/fitness-may-lower-death-risk-even-without-weight-loss

Team Transplant article in Columns—It’s out in print. Still waiting for the online version….if you’d like to be on the lookout for it, the website is…

http://www.washington.edu/alumni/columns-magazine/

Protected: Schedule Update – November 23

greenglove — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 23:28:55 +0000

Protected: Schedule Update – November 16

greenglove — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 23:25:15 +0000

Protected: Scedule Update – November 16 – Plans for Race Day

greenglove — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 23:23:12 +0000

Protected: Update November 14 – Volunteers Wanted for Expo

greenglove — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 23:20:39 +0000

Protected: Scehdule Update – November 11

greenglove — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 23:18:10 +0000

Protected: Schedule Update – November 4

greenglove — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 23:07:45 +0000

Protected: Schedule Update – October 28

greenglove — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 14:44:15 +0000

Protected: Schedule Update – October 14

greenglove — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 23:28:40 +0000

Protected: Schedule Update – October 7

greenglove — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 23:23:41 +0000

Team Transplant, UWMC