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A Cause Worth Running For: Amanda’s Story
This post was sent to us in December from runner Amanda Strnad of Atlanta, Georgia. Amanda raised more than $1310 for her local pregnancy center. Read about her incredible experience, and check out GoMoGo.org to join her in gaining ground for life!
Two weeks ago today, I participated in my second Half Marathon. This time, as I approached a wall between mile 10 and 11, I didn’t have to ask myself why I was inflicting such pain on my body. I had a purpose.
Last year, there were several moments during the Half that I questioned my sanity–13.1 miles. Why did I ever want to do this? Though crossing the finish line is an incredible rush, I’m not a runner who lives for race day. I race to train; I don’t train to race.
But this year was different. I wasn’t running just for the sake of running or to prove something to myself. I had a cause to support. I was running for life.
The journey began in July when I ran my 1st Peachtree Road Race. While walking to MARTA after the race (the hardest part of the whole thing), I saw a group in purple shirts sitting on a bench. They had run as a team for a leukemia cure. I decided then that I wanted to run for a cause, but though there are many wonderful causes to support, none of the majors struck the right chord with my heart.
I knew that if I was going to ask people to sponsor me, I needed to find a cause that I was passionate about. I sighed, wishing there was a pro-life team to run with, but quickly dismissing the possibility that any such team existed. I began praying for Papa to guide me to a team I could get behind.
Not two weeks later, I was volunteering at the pregnancy center when the executive director asked me to look at something with her in her office. She had received information on Marathons for Moms (now Momentium) and asked me if I would look into the details.
The funds you raise through Momentium goes directly to your local pregnancy care ministry. Now this was a cause I could get passionate about! And I thought a pro-life team didn’t exist–what an incredible answer to prayer!
The site is so user friendly that in less than 15 minutes I had read the details, joined the cause and created my personal fundraising page.
I want to thank each and every one of my sponsors again for their support. I reached my fundraising goal and could not have done it without your help. You were each a part of this race and are now a part of the wonderful ministry of the Atlanta Pregnancy Resource Center. Thank you for being the hands and feet of Jesus to these women. I pray that Papa’s hand of favor will rest on you for your generosity.
New! Momentium Profile Pics!
What better way to let your friends and family know that you are serious about gaining ground for life, than to show them through your Facebook profile pic? With Mo as your profile pic, you are giving a face to the unborn every time you show up in your friends’ news feed. Please take a minute to save this image and upload it as your profile pic, or you can find it on our Momentium Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/MomentiumMo.
- Copy this image to use as your Facebook profile pic while you train and raise!
Couch to Half Marathon Guide
Click on this link to see how easy it is to train for a half marathon!
Mo’s Video Debut!
In case you didn’t think Momentium is cool enough, we bring you … our first commercial!!!! We are so pumped up by the great work that our friends at Nack Creative did to help us get the word out to folks all across the country who believe in doing something incredible for the sake of the unborn.
Do you know someone who believes that every child deserves a chance at life? Share this video with them and let them know the difference that they can make by joining Momentium at www.GoMoGo.org.
When is the Race?
I can’t tell you how many times I have been asked that question. The answer is simple: you pick the race, you pick the place (and therefore, you pick the date). To help you along your way, we’ll even connect you to these handy sites that list half-marathons around the United States:
http://www.marathonguide.com/races/races.cfm
(hint: where there is a marathon, there is usually a half-marathon)
What’s great is that there really is a half-marathon for everyone. Last year when I decided to run my first half-marathon I knew I didn’t want a hilly course, and I didn’t want to run in a race with 15,000 people who would leave me in the dust. So, I looked online and found a small race on a bike trail about 2 hours north of my house, near some of my family. Honestly, that was the perfect race for me – and it was on the only weekend I actually had free. Trust, me there is a race for you – all you have to do is seek and you shall find.
But really, I often want to respond that the race is now. We cannot wait. Women need our help. Babies need our help. You might be thinking, “Oh, I don’t want to start training while it is cold and snowy out – I’ll just do an early fall marathon.” The truth is though, that women need your help now. There are women, ages 14-44 walking into pregnancy centers across the country seeking guidance – seeking hope, truth, love. If we want these women to find open doors and open arms, we need to act now. Join Momentium and raise the support that your pregnancy center needs to save lives. Visit www.GoMoGo.org to register and learn more. What are you waiting for?
Megan Palmer is the National Coordinator of Momentium. To contact her with questions, email meganp@GoMoGo.org
Is that really a word?
Someday Momentium will be a household name. In fact, that goal is what keeps me going each day. And not because of my own vain glory, but because it will mean that thousands of individuals will have embraced the call to fight for women in crisis pregnancies.
Today, however, I repeatedly hear the question, “Momentium? What does that mean?”
The answer is simple. Momentium is a strength for life gained by motion. At first when we were praying through and discussing new names, the word “Momentum” stuck out to us because that is precisely what each individual participant does as they move towards their goal of raising $1,310 for their local pregnancy help center. But something wasn’t right – it wasn’t enough.
We needed a name that would convey that we are going to gain more than momentum for the pregnancy help community and the women and babies that it serves. That’s where Momentium came from. The simple act of adding an “I” in there added an additional sense of strength, a focus on the future (think millennium), and a greater feeling of movement. And that’s what we want – a stronger pregnancy help community ensuring the care of future generations and carrying the value of life to all areas of our country. That’s what Momentium is about.
Now it’s my turn to ask you a question. Will you strengthen your local pregnancy help center by joining Momentium and gaining ground for life? Will you provide strength for life to women in your area by running or walking a half-marathon? And just as importantly, will you ask others join you? Visit www.GoMoGo.org to register and to learn more.
Why The New Name?
So, Marathons for Moms has become Momentium. What does that exactly mean? Well, really, not a whole lot – except that we are serious about raising $3 Million of life-saving support for pregnancy help centers this year.
The program is essentially the same – you pick your state, pick your center and register to raise support for that center. We give you a super cool personal fundraising page where you get to tell the world about yourself and why in the world your pregnancy center should have more money to serve more women and babies. You can even load up your favorite photos and videos and write personal messages. Then you can connect that page to Facebook, Twitter, WordPress, or whatever social media program you frequent. You send emails to your friends and family and link to your personal page and ask them to support you in gaining ground for life. Sounds like the same deal, right? Right.
The only difference now is that we have a name that doesn’t cause people to think we are a program to get moms to run marathons. We have a name and a brand that reflect our commitment to excellence for our centers and their funding. A name that is inclusive to runners and walkers, half and full marathoners, men and women, young and old.
Why is that important? Because women need our help. They need to know that they are loved and that the child in their womb is loved. In order to get that message out there (along with pregnancy support services to walk with those women) we need more participants. More men and women to get out there and gain ground for life by participating in any race in any place and raising money for their local pregnancy help center.
Will you help us? Will you be a participant who raises money? Will you be a participant that raises up more runners? Visit www.GoMoGo.org to register, or click here to learn more about that process.
-Megan Palmer, Momentium National Coordinator
Why I Run: Carrie’s Story
True confession? I really love running. There’s something exhilarating about having a goal and reaching it, whether it’s time or distance. It began when I put on my first pair of running shoes in eighth-grade track! Through junior high and high school, I ran the two-mile relay, the mile, two-miler, and get this – hurdles!! Yes – you heard me, these short legs ran hurdles (I am five-foot tall by the way!). I wasn’t ever very good at it, didn’t qualify to go to states. I would place in track meets, improve my times, but never truly excelled into something great. That’s alright, because running is fun and a way to stay fit, gain energy, a stress release, and a great time for praying. This year I decided to run the Columbus 1/2 Marathon. With four kids, one child with special needs, and a busy schedule it’s hard to find the time to consistently run every day, but I was able to complete the race in one-hour, fifty-seven minutes and fifty-eight seconds (but who’s counting?). My goal was around two hours, and I was ecstatic to achieve it.
I have a few reasons for deciding to run the race this year. One was to set a goal and have the discipline to achieve it. Having four kids in nine years has not been conducive to training for long races. I’m not one of those super-women who can run/race while pregnant. This year, our kids were at an age where I had a little more time to train consistently. I have run a few longer races through the years – some 5K’s, a 10-miler, and a 30 K (18.6 miles), but never a half-marathon. Races are fun, the feeling of camaraderie and teamwork among runners as you encourage one another – knowing it’s a great accomplishment to run that many miles. I remember trying to give my boys perspective on how far it was. If you got in the car and drove from our house to Hilliard along I-270…yikes, that is a long way and we are doing it on foot!
The second reason I ran was to raise money for Marathons for Moms. It’s a fund-raiser that is close to my heart especially after having Toby. While pregnant with our third child, at a 21-week ultrasound we learned he had Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus. Later that day, a high risk doctor presented us with the choice to terminate my pregnancy. For us it wasn’t something we even considered, but for many out there they feel it is their only option. Many unborn babies, especially ones with special needs are NEVER given a chance at life. Let’s be honest, society doesn’t exactly treasure children, let alone children that will need many resources (education, money, therapy) for their entire lives.
So I ran for Toby – because of God’s grace, we had the knowledge and resources to have our baby and above all, have hope for his future. I ran for all those babies out there that need a chance to be and to give families hope.
I was truly honored and blessed to raise money and run for Marathons for Moms. It’s incredible to see how God was completely in my training and fund-raising. There were weeks I was only able to fit in one short run during the week and the long-run on Saturday. I wasn’t sure if I would be able to reach my time goal of under two hours or the financial one, but God provided in many ways. My husband sacrificed many hours home alone with four kids, so I could train. God provided the strength and endurance to finish well, and reach the financial goal. One of these was through the final donation in the form of $200.00. A friend donated her entire substitute teaching salary in honor of someone that she knew that chose life for her unborn baby facing a heart defect.
When she told me the reason for the donation I shed tears in thankfulness and joy. Looking back at this journey, both with our son and running, I can see the ways that God has always provided.
He has provided in big ways like facing uncertainty as Toby fought for his life in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at 4 weeks of age, and in small ways – allowing me the time and energy to not only finish a half-marathon, but finish well! In the end, God’s provision is evident and He is the giver of life and hope to everyone who asks.
-Carrie Holt, Columbus, Ohio
Meet Our Runners: Jessie French
I visited the Pregnancy Decision Health Center web page and noticed the Marathons for Moms page in late June of this year. As someone who runs and who has been extremely passionate about the pro-life movement I thought it sounded like a great idea. However, I’m also a full time graduate student and a mother to five year-old triplets. In addition, I usually only run four or five miles at a time. But Marathons for Moms kept entering my mind every single day. Finally, as my husband and I were at a Christian concert in late July I told him of my dilemma of how I had this feeling like I was supposed to run, but questioning how I could possibly train with my already hectic schedule. At that time a gentleman walked over and stood beside us. He was wearing a half marathon t-shirt. God had spoken and I heard Him loud & clear.
However, I still wasn’t 100% convinced that my body could handle the training or the race. So I told God that He would have to increase my runs without my typical knee pain before I would officially sign up and make an announcement at church. Of course God was faithful and my runs quickly increased from four miles to seven or eight miles. At the same time my knees, which are normally sore due to runner’s knee, were doing great. So I made it official with my registration for the race and my announcement to the church.
Not only was I able to complete my first ever half marathon for Marathon for Mom’s this year, I was also able to reach 3/4 of my fundraising goal! In addition, I improved my usual time and came in faster than I ever anticipated at the beginning of my training. Though I thought I would walk away hating such distance running, I would love to do another half marathon and improve my finish time to under two hours. I would also love to fundraise again for Marathons for Moms. I cannot think of a cause more deserving than helping the unborn and those in crisis pregnancies. Thank you to all of the staff at Pregnancy Decision Health Centers for all that you do each and every day; and thank you to God for moving me out of my comfort zone and being my strength each step of the way!
-Jessie French, Marysville, Ohio