Thank you for visiting my Personal Fundraising Page. Donating through this site is simple, fast and totally secure. It is also the most efficient way to make a contribution to our fundraising efforts. Many thanks for your support -- and don't forget to forward this to anyone who you think might want to donate too!

Visit www.indianyouth.org to see the great work that this charity is doing in indian country.

When I first visited the Pine Ridge Reservation in 1992, I was torn between the wonderful people I met there and the condition of poverty in which they live.  Here are a few statistics from "The Arrogance of Ignorance" by Stephanie M. Schwartz.  97% of the people living on Pine Ridge live below the poverty level.  The life expectancy there is almost 30 years less than for the average American.  Teen suicide happens 150% more often and infant mortality rates are 300% greater.  The school drop-out rate is 70% and teacher turnover rate in schools is 8 times that of the average school in this country.  The picture looks bleak.

Here is the paradox.  The Lakota people (and those in indian country in general) are full of hope.  Programs like Running Strong are helping to provide water, housing, community gardens, and uplifting youth programs.  These amazing people need your help in order to provide programs that improve self-sufficiency and self-esteem.

Thank you for any help you can give.

OFFLINE DONORS:  The Church of Uncertain, Mabel & Tom Stewart, Phil & Jan Taylor, Al Smith, Klenosky family, Newcomer family, Lauer family

TRAINING LOG & THOUGHTS THAT MOTIVATE ME:

Final Entry before Sunday's Marathon:  I will run the race, but will have to take it very easy.  My only goal now is to finish and "beat the bridge".

Marathon Week:  I have another round of blood-work on Wednesday morning.  Wednesday afternoon, I will decide with my physician if I will run on Sunday.  My fever is finally gone, so I am hopeful.

Week 2:  After a visit to the Dr. since I couldn't break my fever running almost 3 weeks, I found that I might be too sick to run.  No running until I'm better.

Week 3:  Last week ended with me sick and unable to do my final big long-run.  After thinking about the almost 800 miles I've run this year, I was able to keep my hopes up.  I could run some this week and it wasn't hard to run at marathon pace.  I'll test myself out at the end of the weekend with 12 miles.  Sometimes in life we need to see the opportunities in front of us when we are presented with challenges we didn't ask for.  16 days until the marathon!

Week 4:  Better week so far.  I was reading in Keeping Heart on Pine Ridge last night about the "sharing of food".  I wanted to thank my donors, since in a way, their gift will help many tyospayes on the reservations share food that is healthy, organic, and locally grown...instead of relying on commodities.

Week 5:  Hard week.  I hurt most of the week after last Saturday's run.  I'm glad I did it, but I know where my current physical limits are.  16 miles on Sat. wasn't bad, but was much slower than last week.

Week 6:  Great week!  I ran 45 miles this week with the long run being 21.  I was able to hold about 20 seconds slower than my goal pace during the entire run.  I definitely felt like I could go another 5 miles.  I know that Running Strong has helped fund some 5K races before.  The health benefits of regular exercise might be easier to obtain when kids grow up with sports and exercise like these races as part of their community.

Week 7:  Good week.  I ran a 10-mile and a 15-mile in the same week.  I thought about how it is so easy to take "modern conveniences" for granted this week.  Our bodies need water- clean, fresh water.  I can go to any water fountain along the trails in my community and get fresh well-water.  Running Strong helps make that same thing a reality for many families on Pine Ridge.  If you are reading this log, please help them continue this by making a donation today!

Week 8:  By the end of tomorrow's 18 mile long run, I will have run 600 miles since February 1.  Please help us raise money to fund these vital programs.  The children and future generations deserve health and hope!  LONG-RUN UPDATE:  The 18 miler went extremely well.  I held almost 4 minutes per mile faster than the last time I ran the identical route during week 15.  Cooler temps, smarter training, and a cooler head prevailed.

Week 9:  Training continues to go well!  My 12.5 mile long run was a step-down from last week (next week is 18 again).  I ran 38 minutes faster on this run than when I ran it 15 weeks ago!  This week I was thinking about how expensive food was when we were on the rez this summer (the healthier the food, the more it cost) and how important it is to maintain the organic community gardens with programs like the Slim Buttes Agricultural Program.  When food is grown and prepared with love and respect, it can help the people so much more.  Knowing my fundraising will help continue programs like this means so much to me.

Week 10:  Really good week.  I found myself running faster than I have in the last 20 weeks.  I ran a 15-miler on Saturday about 2 minutes faster per mile than my early long runs.  I'm starting to get really excited about the marathon.

Week 11:  Back to the road!  Focusing on running at marathon speed as much as possible.  My 10 mile run on Saturday was over 2 minutes per mile faster than some of my early runs.  I'm still no runner, but I am now Running Strong because today's American Indian Youth need our help.

Weeks 13 & 12:  Not too much running these weeks, but South Dakota was amazing.  It was so wonderful to see so many of my close friends again.  However, it brought home to me the continued need for health care, housing, nutritious food options, water supply, and programs encouraging self-sufficiency on the reservations.  These programs that will enable America's original inhabitants to use their traditions and wisdom to develop programs that can heal the wounds of the last 200 years.  This is what is so great about Team Running Strong.  If you can, please help them make a difference!

Week 14:  Good week so far.  I focused on hills, pace-work, and some speed.  I just finished my second cycle of three before taper.  I will be on the Pine Ridge Rez for weeks 13 & 12, and won't be able to run too much.  Week 11 will start an 8 week push until taper.  Being in South Dakota will help my motivation!

Week 15:  18 miler on Saturday.  It didn't go so well with higher temps and humidity.  I found myself walking, stretching and resting quite a bit.  I finished it though!  I look forward to another shot at it and hope the weather is cooler.  It really tested my will to finish.

Week 16:  42 miles this week.  In the middle of the week, I got to where I didn't want to get out and run.  I read some stories from the www.indianyouth.org website and I felt like I could do this, no matter how sore and tired I was.

Week 17:  Much better week!  16 mile run on Saturday went really well.  I know I have to keep this up; I have 2 groups of people counting on me, now-people that sponsored me and the youth that will benefit from these programs.  Less than 4 months to go.

Weeks 18 & 19:  I thought I was getting either sick or hurt.  Aching hips and back and overall lack of energy.  I backed way off.

Week 20:  14 mile run on Saturday-not too bad.  I finally feel like my training is on pace.

Week 21:  32 mile week.  Running this much is hard.  It is only a small sacrifice that I can make to help improve at least one person's life, one family's living conditions.  How can we close our eyes to the inequalities between the wealth and poverty in this country?  This oppression can end through generosity to empowering programs like running strong.  I feel like I can give of myself until it hurts, so that others can have the health and happiness they deserve.

Week 22:  Recovery week due to attending a conference.

Week 23: Repeated long run from last week.  15 minutes faster.  This is too important to me to not keep improving.

Week 24:  Long run of 12 miles on Saturday.  I found it hard to keep going in the last 4 miles.  Somehow, we have to be resilient in life.  I hope the money I raise will help bring programs to the children that helps them to be resilient.

Week 25:  This was a bit of a fall-back week on mileage.  I added a hill work-out and wasn't as sore as expected.  It did make the training runs feel a bit longer, though.  The water quality from the wells dug on the Pine Ridge Reservation is high quality, but the water from the Missouri River is questionable.  The water well program helps families obtain clean water without having to store it in containers, when pumped from other locations.