Call me crazy but I think running a marathon is so cool and so fun! I love the training, the challenge, the structure and come race day the energy and excitement are just off the wall. And here’s the cool thing about completing a marathon – only .5% of the U.S. population has completed a marathon so you are a rockstar by just completing one! I am a mother runner who got back into marathon running last year after a 20+ year hiatus and happily completed two marathons in 2018. I am currently training for the Chicago Marathon in October and I am super excited to be running on behalf of Every Mother Counts (EMC), a non-profit organization whose goal is to make pregnancy and childbirth safe for every mother, everywhere!!

About 18 months ago I watched an interview with Christy Turlington Burns, the founder of Every Mother Counts and I immediately knew I wanted to join Team EMC to help to raise awareness and funds about the maternal health care issues facing women around the world. In that interview, Christy talked about her own experience with an unexpected and unpredictable complication — postpartum hemorrhage. Her near-death experience led her to seek out information about other women in the world who found themselves in the same position, but without the same access, she had to quality health care something I believe most of us take for granted – I know I did. The statistics are staggering especially right here in the U.S.

The United States is the only industrialized nation with a consistently rising rate of maternal deaths – 2 a day! Severe complications of pregnancy and childbirth are also on the rise in the US – one woman every 10 minutes in the US experiences a life-threatening complication of pregnancy or childbirth.

I am so excited to be part of Team EMC and help raise awareness for a cause that I believe so so important! Team EMC runs because distance is one of the biggest barriers preventing women from accessing healthcare of any kind. All our miles make a difference and your support is greatly appreciated.

Please help me reach my personal goal of raising $2000 for Every Mother Counts by making a contribution, and all donations are tax-deductible. You can donate and learn more about my journey here https://bit.ly/2KLGw1h 

And to learn more about Every Mother Counts, visit their website and watch the short films below:
• About Every Mother Counts – https://vimeo.com/185578500
• Why We Run – https://vimeo.com/125334105
• Giving Birth In America: https://vimeo.com/133366512

Thank you!