Just Run for a Just Cause

James and I FINALLY ran our first 5K yesterday and had such a great time! This is something that I have always wanted to do and am glad that I can finally say that I did it. I RAN A 5K! Although this might not seem like a big feat to some, it is to me. I have a long list of things that I want to accomplish in my life (aka: the bucket list as Heather likes to refer to it) and now I can check this one off.

In August, a precious little baby named Savannah Sue was diagnosed with SMA (Spinal Muscular Atrophy) and just as a community should do, our school came together to rally behind this family. Although I do not know them very well, I do know that this sweet baby’s mother is a PTA mom at our school who has supported our teachers since our school opened a little over 2 years ago....who has always made us feel that we are doing great things and are appreciated for our hard work. Now, it’s our turn to rally around her and her family as they go through this very difficult time. We decided as a group that we would run a 1/2 marathon in January in honor of this little girl...our team name is Savannah Smiles.

As James and I began to train for the 1/2 marathon, we saw an advertisement in our church bulletin for a 5K, “Just Run for a Just Cause.” Of course we were excited to have the opportunity to start small in preparation for the BIG run but we're even more honored to be taking part in such a great cause. This run was to raise money and create awareness for sex trafficking in the Houston area, U.S., and the entire world!

So, as I trained and participated in this race, I reminded myself of the motto we’ve all kept close to our hearts, “Pray hard! Train hard!” I ran for all of the girls/ladies who are bound by sex trafficking. I ran for my dear friends, Dawn and Jackie who are battling breast cancer. I ran for the sweet Savannah Sue who’s little body is fighting SMA. I ran and I prayed, day after day and tried to keep my focus on what is really important in all of this, not how fast I can finish the race but those in fact that I am running for.

Although I finished the race in 32:56 beating my previous time, I am more proud of myself for the cause that I ran for. My prayer is that we raised enough money to make a difference in the lives of those girls/ladies who are in bondage and that we created an awareness that opens the eyes of those who are unaware so that we can continue to come together as a community and help fight against this issue. I know that this cause has opened my eyes!

James and I anxiously awaiting the start of the race-nervous but VERY excited!
We did it-finally finished our first 5K!	My husband is so sweet and held back so we could cross the finish line together!
We ran in to Monica (a lady I work with) before the race started.	Monica is training for the Houston Marathon in January-way to go Monica, you did a great job!!
Sporting our shirts after cleaning up since we didn’t wear them during the run!

I truly am proud of me and James for committing to this race and for finishing it! With a great Leader, a supportive partner (hey, not many people would have slowed down to hand me the headphone piece that fell out of my ear), and amazing motivation, big things can and are happening. So, I will continue to run for as long as I am able to....Pray hard! Train hard!