It's hard for me to explain the positive role sports have played in my life.
Off the top of my head, sports taught me to win and lose (and to do so appropriately). Sports taught me how to collaborate. Sports taught me how to listen. Sports taught me how to lead. Sports taught me how to manage my time (more sports, less homework). Sports taught me how to set goals. Sports taught me that hard work pays off.
Generally speaking, there were no impediments to my participation in whatever sport I wanted to play, other than the fact that there are only so many hours in the day (and perhaps I occasionally lacked the right skills, or at least enough of them).
To give you an idea of how easy it is for me, a few weeks ago a friend asked me to run the Austin Marathon with him next February 20th.
Other than determining that I was free that weekend (I wasn't, but then I was), the only thing I had to think about was whether I had the desire to put in the miles during winter here in NYC. That's it.
Unfortunately, that's not the case for a lot of people. They have the desire. They have the passion. They have the dreams. But they need equipment, coaching, mentoring and travel expenses to participate.
And so I am running Austin 2022 in honor of CAF and asking you to help me fulfill dreams by donating to the Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF)!
For those of you not familiar with CAF, CAF is an incredible organization that helps children and adults fulfill their dreams of racing, swimming, or running.
CAF’s mission is clear: give those with the desire to live active, competitive lifestyles every opportunity to compete in the sports they love.
If you need a little bit of help picturing the joy that sports can bring, here's a video of one of CAF's annual events, which took place just a few weeks ago: http://support.challengedathletes.org/site/MessageViewer?em_id=4749.0&dlv_id=7918
Your generosity will help empower physically challenged individuals with the equipment, coaching, mentoring and travel expenses necessary to find success in sports — and in life!
Please support my fundraiser by making a donation today. I promise you it will make a difference.
Thank you!