BACK ON MY FEET wrote -

Four Resident Members of Back on My Feet are running the 2012 Boston Marathon! Help Austin, Brian, Wahid, and Chris get across the finish line on April 16!

“This is much bigger than 26.2 miles for our members,” says Bridget Horne, Director of Communications & Corporate Relations for Back on My Feet Boston. “The experience of training for and running a marathon is transcendental. When these guys cross the finish line of the Boston Marathon, they will have proven to themselves and to everyone that there’s nothing they can’t do. This will be the first of many more major finish lines of their lives, be it completing a degree, landing a secure job, or moving into permanent housing; all of which they’ll be working towards as they train for April 16. Running is the perfect metaphor for life because hard work, dedication, and perseverance, do and eventually will pay off.”

Back on My Feet is a nonprofit organization that promotes the self-sufficiency of those experiencing homelessness by engaging them in running as a means to build confidence, strength and self-esteem. Back on My Feet (BoMF) does not provide food nor does it provide shelter, but instead provides a community that embraces equality, respect, discipline, teamwork and leadership. All members - regardless of race, education or socioeconomic status - join together to move their own lives forward as well as the lives of their teammates.

There are six BoMF teams in the Greater Boston area. St. Francis House, Boston Rescue Mission, Hope House, New Enland Center for Homeless Veterans, Somerville Homeless Coalition, and Father Bill's House. Each team runs every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 5:45 a.m. After 30 days in our program, each member who maintains 90% attendance moves to the Next Steps phase. Next Steps enables members to move towards self-sufficiency through educational and job training opportunities. Additionally, each member has the opportunity to earn $1,250 in financial aid to assist in their efforts toward self-sufficiency.

BoMF Boston Marathon FundRacers have committed to raise a minimum of $5,400 for the organization.