Above: A Southborough resident is using the 2025 Boston Marathon to raise funds for Beth Israel Lahey Health (images edited from contributed photo and BIHL Facebook post)
[The Boston Marathon always includes a pack of runners from our town. Between now and Patriots Day, I’m featuring stories of resident runners donning bibs for a cause]
A week from Monday, Southborough’s Jim Carroll will run in the Boston Marathon to raise funds for Beth Israel Lahey Health (BILH).
Carroll tells me that he chose to support the non-profit because:
BILH is an organization dedicated to delivering world-class healthcare and expanding access to high-quality care across local Boston area communities. They have provided me and my family exceptional healthcare over the years.
His fundraising page touts why he hopes others will support BILH’s work:
Please join me in supporting the BILH charity to provide critical research initiatives and allow expanded healthcare options for all patients, their families and the community.
It’s Carroll’s first Boston Marathon, but hardly his first big athletic accomplishment (as you can read below).
On the fundraising page, Carroll gave more details about his “wellness journey” that intertwines the cause he’s raising funds for with the method he’s using to do it. Here are excerpts:
Twenty years ago, I started on a wellness journey with the intent of improving my overall health through regular exercise. I needed something that would help motivate me to achieve daily, weekly and monthly fitness goals. At the time, a friend was training for a triathlon, so I decided to join him and use training for the triathlon as the driving force behind my wellness journey. I have not only become fitter but have also found great enjoyment by bringing others into this amazing sport. . . .
A life filled with high levels of physical activity has both expected and unexpected events. I was introduced to BILH by a close friend due to an injury that happened on the soccer field. I ended up having ACL reconstruction surgery at Lahey Hospital, followed by physical therapy. With the excellent care I received, I was back to my pre-injury physical activity levels within a few months. Since the start of my fitness journey, I have completed thirty-eight triathlons including a half ironman, run more than two dozen road races including a half marathon, played more than 200 competitive soccer games, skied countless miles and made it to the summit of numerous 4,000-foot mountain peaks in New Hampshire. In the past year alone, through swim, bike and run activities, I have covered more than 2,172 miles, including competing this past June, in the 12.5-mile relay swim race around Key West with my son, brother-in-law and nephew. This all would not have been physically possible without the amazing care received at BILH.
Over the years, BILH has provided my family and I exceptional care from routine prevention to a few serious medical issues. My story is but one of many, all made possible by the comprehensive and compassionate healthcare provided by BILH.
To support the fundraiser, click here. To learn more about the non-profit, click here.
[Note: If you are a Southborough resident using the Marathon to raise funds/awareness for a cause, please reach out with your information. Email mysouthborough@gmail.com.]
