Thank you for visiting my Kamusi Marathon fundraising page for the Kamusi Project Internet Living Swahili Dictionary. I have now run the marathon, but have not yet met the fundraising target, so please click below to support this effort!

The Kamusi Project (www.yale.edu/swahili) is the premier resource for African Languages on the Internet. Swahili, the most widely spoken African language, is spoken by many of the world's greatest marathoners. The project will run out of funds on December 30 - so I trained for the Hartford Marathon to help keep it going.

RACE UPDATE: Tropical Storm Tammy drenched Connecticut on the original race day, and another deluge soaked the state during my rescheduled race. In order to fulfill my committment to the many people who have sponsored my marathon run, I therefore ran 26.2 miles by myself in the Yale gym, starting on the treadmill and ending on the track. I ran on October 22 and finished in a little over 4 hours. While running indoors was much more tedious and lonely than a regular road race, I am happy to report that I did finish first in my age group :-) I even added an extra lap around the track for good luck. I was able to walk up stairs when it was over, but just barely.
I ran the full marathon, which is 26.2 miles (42.2 kilometers). This was my third marathon, though the first time I've run for charity. Next time you're in a car, pay attention to how far 26.2 miles is, and then imagine running it. Then imagine the work that goes into preparing your body to be able to run that far. The Kamusi Project is in many ways a lot like a marathon. The project is building resources for African Languages, step by step, over the course of many years. If we can raise the funds, the project will keep getting better and serving more people. The project is available free to anyone, and is used every day by people around the world. Please support the project by sponsoring my run - you can sponsor me even though the run has already occurred. Consider a per-mile or a per-kilometer donation. A dollar a mile, two euros per kilometer, five pounds sterling per nautical mile, a flat pledge of $50 or $1000 - whatever you can afford will be a big help to the project. Donate what feels good, or, in the spirit of running a marathon, donate until it hurts... You make a few clicks, I run until my legs fall off, and students around the world get a free educational resource that keeps getting better. Pretty cool how that works, isn't it? When I reached those last miles, with salty sweat in my eyes, my legs screaming in pain, and 50 laps still to ahead of me, knowing I was supported by people around the world helped push me toward the finish line. Donating through this site is simple, fast and totally secure. It is also the most efficient way to make a contribution to my fundraising efforts. As a bonus, every dollar you contribute toward the $14,550 goal has the potential to free up an equal amount in matching funds, if the project is awarded a matching grant for which we recently applied. Two for the price of one (knock on wood) - and if enough people jump in to sponsor me after November 1, I'll run the distance again this winter! Many thanks for your support -- and please forward this to 26.2 people who you think might want to donate too!