I ran the marathon!

Dear Friends and Family,
I did it! I ran the Disney marathon on Sunday in 5 hours and 54 minutes. I wanted to run it in 5 hours and 30 minutes. But I'm happy that I finished under 6 hours... and finished strong.

My day started at 3:30 a.m. when I got up, stretched, ate, got dressed. I met my running group at 4:25 so that we could be at Disney for 5:00 a.m. All 18,000 of us, the marathon runners, gathered at our starting corrals. I have to admit that since it was my first marathon, I was a little emotional about being there and starting the race with everyone that was there. After the Star Spangled Banner was sung and the fireworks went off, we had to wait until we could get through the starting line. As we ran by our chips went off to start our times. I think I went past the start at 6:06.

Running the first 10, 13, 15 miles went well. Watching the groups of people run together, teams running for causes, coaches on the sidelines, and all the different runners dressed in character costumes was very entertaining. There was everything from The Incredibles, Pink Flamingoes, the Spartans from "300", the list could go on. We ran through all of the Disney parks and
had characters, volunteers and cast members to greet us every step of the way. Joe, Dominick, Mia and Stefano were my fans by the sidelines. Mia made me a sign that said, "Mom, you're our hero" with a picture of a butterfly, the symbol for Project Rescue. Seeing them was very inspiring. At the same time my family at Celebrate Church was getting updates and cheering me on too. Joe and I are so blessed to have an awesome church family like Celebrate Church.

Miles 19 and 20 started to get hard. But it wasn't until miles 23 and 24 that I called Joe and asked him to say a little prayer for me. Although I wanted to go the distance, my legs were starting to really hurt. At mile 25, there was a Gospel choir singing and inspiring us to finish - I got me some "church" at that moment. When things got hard, I kept saying to myself, "This is for the girls of India, the girls of Nepal, the girls of Bangladesh, the girls of the Philippines, the girls of Thailand, the girls of Moldova, Rumania, Russia..." It was my inspiration to finish strong.

When I saw mile 26, the adrenaline came back and I began to sprint the .2 miles that were left. Coming around the bend of the last stretch I could see the crowds cheering us on. Then I saw the stands and could only envision an iota of what the first part of Hebrews 12:1 says, "Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and LET US RUN WITH ENDURANCE THE RACE THAT IS SET BEFORE US." The writer of Hebrews must have had a little marathon runner in him:)

I cried as I crossed the finish line but had to quickly stop so that I wouldn't hyper ventilate:) The feeling of finishing this huge accomplishment filled me with emotion because of all of the hard work: 5:45 a.m. runs (thanks for the accountability Celebration tri-junkies!), long runs when I could squeeze them in - sometimes in the heat of the day, cross training, not eating everything I wanted to eat, working through minor injuries (thank you Dr. Ben for your adjustments and counsel on everything from nutrition, supplements and training!) and especially because I had done this for Project Rescue. My friends Bob (thanks for my pink Project Rescue hat!), Susan, and Kim Bettencourt were also there at the finish line to cheer me on.

But I have to tell you that all of you were there in my thoughts as I crossed the line because of your prayers, words of encouragement, and your sponsorships. You're awesome! Thank you for supporting me. Together we will make the difference in the lives of girls, women and children who we will never meet in the here and the now but their futures and their eternity will be changed forever because you and I came together to form Team Run for Rescue. Next year I hope to have more runners, coaches and supporters join me in Team Run for Rescue.

Up to date we have raised a little over $5,000 dollars but the sponsorships continue to come in so I'm hopeful that it will be much more. I will keep you updated on the figures and the sponsorships through our website (runforrescue.org) and emails.

God bless you!
Carol Saragusa

Last long run today.

Today was my last medium to long run (8 miles)...ran with our tri-junkie group. Several of our runners are hurt or fighting injuries. I 've had some hamstring issues, ever since our 20 mile long run but I've been nursing it with stretching, ice and massages. I feel really good about the marathon on Sunday, very excited to finally accomplish running one.

The response to the website has been really good. I will continue to get the word out about it. The pictures on the website will really put faces to the cause of Project Rescue, seeing the faces of the little girls as they dance and play in Home of Hope makes me feel there is hope for these beautiful little girls...even more so when people like you and me connect to do something.