Above: An inspiring Southborough resident is again using the marathon to raise funds to help others with spinal cord injuries and disabilities. (photo cropped from fundraising page with permission)
[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]
Over eight years ago, Southborough’s Grace Bellefeuille believed she would never walk again, let alone run in the marathon that had been a dream since she was a kid. She was wrong. Last year, she successfully completed the Boston Marathon.
That success was part of her journey she credited as possible thanks to intense physical therapy. Now, for the second year running, she’s using the marathon to raise funds for an organization that helps people like her.
As a high school ice hockey player, Bellefeuille experienced spinal cord injuries. On her fundraising page for Journey Forward, she explains that in November 2016:
It became a realization that I would never walk again, let alone run a 26.2-mile race. After leaving Boston Children’s Hospital, I had only regained full mobility back in the lower half of my body, while the upper half was still limited. Little did I know the journey was far from over. After six months of intense therapy, I relearned how to do everything that I once took for granted.
Later that same year, I worked beyond what I thought possible, returned to hockey, and soon understood I would never be the same. Today, I must remind myself I’m grateful to get out of bed on my recognizance; unfortunately, others can’t say the same. . .
Journey Forward is the reason why people like me can feel a sense of normality after such traumatic experiences. They continue to give people hope daily and remind others that the battle is more than physical. It’s mental, too.
In a recent interview with WCVB News (ABC 5), Bellefeuille said:
I want to keep proving to myself and proving to others that. . . you can get hurt, but you can get back out there and run a 26 by mile race.
Bellefeuille has already exceeded her fundraising goal of $12K for this year’s run. If you’d like to support her 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.]
