How many times have you read someone's FB status about him or her going out for a run and responded with (or at least thought about responding with) a "Run a mile or two for me, okay?" Now, imagine that one phrase kick-starting a worldwide movement and awesome non-profit IR4 (I Run 4) was born.
"God gave me the gift of mobility. Others aren't so fortunate. So, I run for Michael. Who do YOU run for? - Founder, Tim Boyle
We came across this group because it was mentioned in one of the Spina Bifida groups on Facebook. As I went to the website and read a little bit more about the organization I thought "What a great idea!" - matching runners up with buddies that for some reason or another cannot. Both would benefit from a little encouragement - runners get motivation to get out there an run and buddies get motivation to just go out and conquer their world. So, we signed Jackson up to be matched with a buddy.
Because the wait list to be matched has so many more runners than buddies, Jackson was matched within a week. Runners have been waiting upwards of 4 - 6 weeks to be matched. <-----Sooooo, if you think you know a person (young or old) that would benefit from being matched up with a runner, so sign them up. There are tons of super cool runners waiting to be matched (3,200 of them to be exact). :)
Jackson's super-sweet, way-cool runner is Karen.
So, how does this all work? Well, any time that Karen goes out for a run, or gets a workout in or participates in a 5K or PT test she posts in the IR4 group on FB and lets Jackson know all about it. Sometimes she'll post pics of what she sees out on her runs, or posts her awesome stats on how far and fast she ran, or she'll just post that she's been thinking of him and shows him pics of her family, dogs and way-fun new Jeep! We show Jax all the pictures, which he loves to see!
We, in turn, post what Jackson has been up to. Whether it's been going to doctor's appointments, playing outside in the sun or hamming it up on video.
She was even very thoughtful and sent Jackson some birthday presents! All of this favorite things - Cars, puzzles and Spiderman! :) We've got a little something to send out to her, but I've been trying to persuade Jackson into doing a little artwork for her and so far he hasn't been been a willing participant. Soon though!
I'm so glad that we signed Jackson up for this. Not only does it give his runner a little inspiration to get out and brave the Texas heat to get in an extra mile or two for her little buddy, but it also gives Jackson some else to look up to. He may not understand it now, but I think this group will be very good for him when he gets older and is able to read not only Karen's post but see all of the other people that post in the group. There are tons and tons of cool people in there that I think he would like reading about. And I really hope that Jackson and Karen are buddies for a very long time. She is so nice and has a great family and we are sooo proud and happy to be paired with them. Who knows, maybe some day we'll take a vacation to Texas and meet her in person!
Want to find out more about I Run 4? Check out their website at http://www.whoirun4.com/.
Peace out!
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