November turned out to be another great month at St.Leonard’s. The team members are seeing the pay off to all the running they’ve been doing. Of course the incentives are great, hats, shirts, medals, etc., but, I think it is safe to say that the other benefits far outweigh the incentive prizes. Maurice & Ramiro have both seen the health benefits running gives them with weight loss and also improving other health issues. Michael & Darren both have developed the love of running and have tapped into their competitive side pushing themselves to great achievements. Elton uses running as a tool to alleviate negative feelings. Keith saw first hand that when personal issues creep up, there is support and care in his running family. Mingo, who is a longtime runner, encourages and supports his fellow team-mates to go the distance and persevere. We welcome new residential member Javier to our team.
On October 30th, some of our team members ran their first 5K (Carrea de los Muertos). It was a cold morning as we waited excitedly for the race to start. The end was filled with big smiles and some amazing times: Darren (22:52), Michael (26:37), Keith (26:38), Mingo (29:47), Ramiro(33:11). On November 14th, we participated in a BOMF only 5K with the 2 other Chicago teams. More amazing times with Darren coming in first at 21:15 and Mingo coming in 3rd over-all. Those who ran both 5K’s saw improvements in their over-all times with Ramiro shaving off 3 minutes! We finished off the race with a delicious potluck Thanksgiving Feast. On Thanksgiving Day, Michael, Darren, Mingo, and Elton put in their longest run to date (6-7 miles) when they participated in a community Turkey Trot.
Our team runs have been increasing in mileage. We now have run some 5.5 mile runs. Many of our residential members have run well over 50 miles since the program started. We have started our Saturday runs. We continue to implement track workouts for speed work and it’s also a great chance for the team to run together. Recently, the team ran a 1 mile prediction run where the runners predicted how long it would take them to run 1 mile and then they ran the mile. Keith was the closest to his estimate of 7:35 coming in at 7:38. The team will be participating in the Santa Hustle on December 4th. Some of the team members will begin training for a half marathon that will take place in January.
A big thank you to Elton who was interviewed for an article published in the Chicago Journal about Back On My Feet. Elton did a wonderful job representing our team and Back On My Feet.
RESIDENTIAL MEMBER OF THE MONTH: Michael Williams
Since day 1, or day 3 to be precise (since he joined just after our Chicago launch), Michael has been dedicated to running and has brought a great team spirit to the group. Despite his slightly late start, Michael recently became the first BOMF member in Chicago history to reach 100 overall miles. Recently, he said:
“If you told me a year ago that I’d be waking up really early to run or to go cheer people on at a race, I would have said you were crazy. But through running, a lot of things have opened up for me. I feel like I’ve discovered a whole new world, something that I didn’t even know existed. I like the environment, the people. I guess you could say I’ve developed a little passion for it.”
NON-RESIDENTIAL MEMBER OF THE MONTH: Kate Thinglum
Where would the St. Leonard’s team be without Kate? In just two short months since the Chicago launch, she’s acted as the Team Coach, Team Organizer, and recently became the Team Leader. Her dedication, motivation, enthusiasm, knowledge, and especially her baking are unmatched and the St. Leonard’s team is grateful for her contributions. But as Kate will tell you:
“Running used to be all about going faster and training for races, but the guys at St. Leonard’s have shown me that running is about so much more than that. As much as outsiders think that I am helping them, these guys are helping me too-it’s the best thing in the world to be greeted first thing in the morning with hugs, words of encouragement, and a group of the most dedicated guys I know!”
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