Appreciation goes to Alan Lam for making this a series that touched our hearts and helped us recognize that we, as runners, can indeed make a difference in the lives of those in need.
Be sure to visit the web site wwwmiraclemarathon.org some time in the near future.
Continued from last week:
It was hard to believe that this very same Camp Sunshine once over 1600 miles away, now stood right in front of our eyes. It was a feeling no word could describe. Two people shook our hands as we entered the building. First was Dr. Larry Gould, the founder of Camp Sunshine. He was to be expected, but the second person was not. My already emotionally overloaded mind almost failed me in recognizing this face. Joan Benoit-Samuelson. The Olympic gold medallist of the first ever Women's Olympic Marathon. I knew that Joan, a Maine resident, volunteers at Camp Sunshine, but we didn't expect to see her standing in the rain there for us.
We were then led down the hallway to the main hall where the grand opening ceremony was to be held. We were dripping water and our shoes made funny noise as we walked into a hall of over 300 volunteers, families and members of the media. All standing on their feet, clapping and cheering. We were seated on the stage as guests of honor. Various politicians took turns making speeches.
Laurie, Dr. Gould's daughter, also spoke to the crowd. In her own words, she told us how she witnessed Camp Sunshine grew since it first opened doors to ill children in 1984. She then said how proud she was of her parents. Through tears, she said, "Happy Father's Day, Dad!" Dr. Gould and wife Anna took turns making speeches afterward.
In his speech, Dr. Gould told us even he was skeptical and couldn't believe his own ears when Matt first approached him 8 months ago with the idea of the Miracle Marathon. "You want to run from where?" Dr. Gould had asked. "This is crazy!" But then he told us how thankful and glad he was for Matt's dedication and persistence.
He then presented Matt a well-deserved plaque to recognize his dedication and achievement. In his acceptance speech, Matt told us how he came up with the idea of the Miracle Marathon after visiting Camp Sunshine, as well as how Camp Sunshine never stopped going the distance for the families and had out run the Miracle Marathon
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