Welcome to my fundraising page! My Name is Briana, and I live, work, and run in Boston, MA. I've been running since high school, but really got into distance running when I moved here for graduate school in 2009. I saw the 2010 Boston Marathon and was so struck by the courage, strength, and dedication of all of the runners, that I felt like I just HAD to challenge myself to do it, too. So, I ran the 2011 Boston Marathon as an unregistered runner (which was an added challenge in itself!) and was instantly hooked. There really is no greater feeling of accomplishment than pushing yourself to your limits, mentally AND physically, and then surpassing them. I've now run 8 marathons and am currently training for the Disney World Marathon in January 2013. Pittsburgh will be an extra special race for me because it will be my 10th marathon - double digits, baby!!! I really can't believe how crazy I've become.

So Why Pittsburgh? And why Free Wheelchair Mission?

The 2013 Pittsburgh Marathon will be my first marathon participating as a charity runner. I chose to run the Pittsburgh Marathon because I got my Bachelor's degree close by at IUP and spent a lot of time going back and forth to Pittsburgh on the weekends. It's a beautiful city with great people and a small town feel that I really appreciate. It's also where I learned to love hockey - and HATE football! :P

I chose to run for Free Wheelchair Mission because the message behind the organization is one that hits close to home for me. I am a speech-language pathologist working at a school with deafblind children who have significant physical, medical, and communication challenges. Most of my students rely on wheelchairs to get around both at home and at school, and have adapted equipment that gives them the physical support they need to access their education. Basically, if my students weren't fortunate enough to have access to wheelchairs and other mobility equipment to support them, I couldn't do MY job of helping them communicate. I also think that it's really easy to forget that mobility is a GIFT and not something to take for granted. My hope is that by raising funds and awareness for Free Wheelchair Mission, we will give the gift of mobility to people all over the world, and inspire others to take advantage of their physical health.

Thanks for visiting!

My blog: http://www.therunningspeechie.com

Click here to visit Free Wheelchair Mission's official website.

Click here to visit Free Wheelchair Mission's charity profile page on CrowdRise.