I am now training to run the Boston Marathon this April for my third year as a member of Team Eye and Ear, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary's marathon team.  Thanks to your generosity, since 2009, I have raised more than $24,000 for neuro-ophthalmology research at Mass. Eye and Ear, which gives me hope that I will one day be able to see again.  This year I hope to raise more than  $15,000.  Please consider supporting me once again in this endeavor.

I know that Mass. Eye and Ear is the place for me to raise funds for, as the research being done there that I hope will benefit me, and many others who have either lost their sight or will due to accidents like mine or degenerate diseases. With your help we will continue this research. 

Last year, while training for the Boston Marathon, I connected with Dr. Joseph Rizzo, a Mass. Eye and Ear neuro-ophthalmologist and fellow Team Eye and Ear member, who inspired me.  Dr. Rizzo will once again be running the Boston Marathon with me this April to also raise funds for neuro-ophthalmogy research.  I really enjoyed the camaraderie among the members of Team Eye and Ear and meeting the other team members to hear their stories and reason for running. 

Thank you for your support -- and don't forget to forward this to anyone who you think might want to donate too!  I Look forward to seeing you again along the way in April.

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WHY I'M RUNNING:
Will, 30, has once again joined Team Eye and Ear from Aspen, CO where he lives with his dog, Riva, a four-year-old Newfoundland.
 
Almost five years ago, Will had a mountain biking accident near Vail, Colorado.  As a result of the accident, he broke his back.  During surgery, Will had a stroke to the optic nerve in both eyes, leaving him legally blind and facing a new way of life.
 
Due to the special rehabilitation Will received while in Craig Hospital, a rehabilitation hospital in Colorado and support from friends and family, he walked out of the facility with only the aid of a cane.  He says, “I have two rods and many screws in my back, but my back has been fine, it’s been my eyes that hold me back.” 
 
“My family has been looking and we are all hoping for some kind of cure for my eyes.”  In 2009, Will found Mass. Eye and Ear and Dr. Dean Cestari’s marathon team of nine members who were raising funds for neuro-ophthalmology research and knew it was a perfect match.
 
Will ran the 2009 and 2010 Boston Marathons with Mass. Eye and Ear in memory of his father who he lost to cancer.  “As a family, we have raised lots of funds for cancer.  Now we think my dad would want us to do some fundraising for eye research and we feel we have found the right place . . . we are all looking for some type of cure for my eyes.”
 
Will is not new to giving back.  He uses his challenges to help others.  In addition to his fundraising activities, Will volunteers for Challenge Aspen, a non-profit organization that offers life changing experiences to individuals and groups with disabilities. 
 
Will attributes what he’s been able to overcome and accomplish due to the support from his friends and family including his mom, who lives in Scituate, MA and his younger sister, Becca, who now lives in Aspen.  Becca who is recovering from a bad ankle break and her hopes for running with Will this year may not come to frutition.  She is a great inspiration to Will.

On April 18, Will will join the 50 other members of Team Eye and Ear for the 115th running of the Boston Marathon to raise funds for neuro-ophthalmology research, which he hopes will one day benefit him.