Anne-Marie House 5K

Earlier this spring I was contacted by Dennis St. Lawrence and asked to participate in a fundraiser for the Anne-Marie House in Hudson, NH, which provides emergency transitional shelter, meals, and services for families experiencing homelessness.  The house is part of the Greater Nashua Interfaith Hospitality Network (GNIHN), a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.  Their vision is to eliminate homelessness one family at a time.  Beautiful.  And, it seems as if they have already made a huge difference in the lives of a number of families.

When I was contacted, I didn't know where I would be living or what I would be doing in the fall, so I expressed my interest in helping, as long as I was in the area.  When I found out I would be around, I called Dennis and said I would be there to help, but wouldn't be able to do much in terms of racing...that whole Achilles lay-off thing.

It was a great afternoon with a lot of people out to support the cause.  I felt horrible warming up and didn't have a game plan.  My main goal was just to get in 8-10 miles and not do anything stupid to my Achilles.  I started the race pretty conservatively and then picked it up as I went along.  I ran 20:31, which was the first time I dipped under 7:30 pace since starting running again.  Good to know it's still possible and not bad since I felt comfortable and purposely wasn't trying to race.  My brother said I could run on his XC team...maybe even Varsity.  Sweet. 

It was a well organized event for a great purpose. I hope to return next year and continue to support the Anne-Marie House.