Thank you for visiting my fund raising page!

I am beyond honored to be running the 2012 Boston Marathon to raise money for an organization near and dear to me, The ALLY Foundation. The ALLY Foundation was founded by the family and friends of Alexandra Nicole Zapp, who was murdered by a convicted sex offender in Bridgewater, MA on July 18, 2002. Everything about Alexandra's death could have been prevented, and it was not. As a result, The ALLY Foundation's mission is to prevent opportunities for violent and sexual crimes.

It's not a topic most people want to think about. Most people like to believe that it is not a part of their lives, but the fact is 1 in 4 women will be the victim of a sex crime in her life. Every day we learn about more instances of children being abused, often by people they trust. It's an issue that's not just going to go away. The ALLY Foundation wants to change that.

After almost eight years of research and exploration, The ALLY Foundation has what it believes to be a comprehensive model that is dynamic, evidenced-based and effective in reducing repeat sex offenses by known offenders. It consists of specialized sex offense courts, state-level multi-disciplinary teams to set consistent guidelines, and an overarching national resource center to offer assistance to the state teams and information and resources to the general public.

I respect and believe in the work that The ALLY Foundation is doing. In addition, since running the marathon with them in 2010 I have had the great pleasure of getting to know some of Alexandra's family and friends. Their warmth and dedication to the work they are doing is unparalleled. And the thing that suprises me the most is, in spite of all they have been through, they are incredibly fun people, keeping Alexandra's free and life-loving spirit alive in all that they do.

I know these are tough economic times, but if you are able to help me help The ALLY Foundation in their mission to make society a safer place, I would greatly appreciate it. Truly every dollar counts!

Thank you for reading and for your support in any form it comes in. I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart and will be thinking of all of you during those cold, wintry training runs, all the way until I make my way down Boylston Street on April 16!

The ALLY Foundation wrote -

The ALLY Foundation was established in memory of Alexandra Nicole Zapp, our loving daughter, sister and friend, who was murdered by a repeat sex offender on July 18, 2002. The Foundation, founded and run by Ally’s mother and stepfather, has a mission to prevent opportunities for violent sex offenses, to educate the public and advocate for necessary changes in culture, attitude and policy It strives to celebrate Alexandra’s memory with the same charitable and compassionate spirit that guided her throughout her short life.

Like so many families whose children have been taken from them by convicted sex offenders, Andrea and Steve first set out to fix the specific loophole that may have prevented Ally’s death. While working to solve the gaps in Massachusetts’ civil commitment law, they soon realized that the entire way we deal with sex offenders is too fragmented and inconsistent to be effective. It was clear that a piecemeal approach had been taken towards sex offender management and that no one had ever stepped back to develop a well-thought out system. Such variable procedures do not set consistent standards for offenders and cannot hold them accountable, increasing the risk to the community. Sex offenders cannot be cured but we can do an infinitely better job at managing them once they are in the system. The Foundation works to prevent known offenders from re-offending by creating a dynamic national infrastructure, implementing evidence-based practices nationally, and informing federal, state and local legislation.

After almost eight years of research and exploration, The ALLY Foundation has what it believes to be a comprehensive model that is dynamic, evidenced-based and effective in reducing repeat sex offenses by known offenders. It consists of specialized sex offense courts, state-level multi-disciplinary teams to set consistent guidelines, and an overarching national resource center to offer assistance to the state teams and information and resources to the general public.

The driving principal behind this system is that models, communication and adaptability are necessary to handle this large and complex problem often shrouded in secrecy and shame. The three-pronged system aims to promote best practices while being able to respond to new circumstances and research. With a 400% increase in convicted sex offenders during the past decade, these management issues will not go away.