Why I'm Running

On October 11, 2026, I will be representing Advocate Health Care as a member of the charity running team at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon! As a member of the charity running team, I will be training, fundraising, and ultimately running 26.2 miles to benefit patients and families in need.

Children diagnosed with diabetes are suddenly faced with a job they never applied for, but must show up for on a day to day basis. Responsibilities also fall on the families as well since this is a team effort diagnosis. Since I started working as a pediatric diabetes educator, I have learned how huge a role community plays within diabetes care, whether it is parents supporting their kids, other families with Type 1 supporting other families, or us as providers uplifting and supporting our patients. This is why we try to put together events to get our families and patients together to lean on one another and know that they have a village and huge team on their side as well as enjoy time out doing activities they enjoy. No one can understand the day in and day out struggles other than those who also face the same challenges, so it's wonderful to see kids meet and bond as well as parents make connections. Events we have curated are a picnic, bowling, children's museum, and a skating party amongst many other fun ideas we would like to do.

I am running the 2026 Chicago Marathon to also invoke a sense of community and to in turn show up for my patients. All of the funds I raise will go directly to our Advocate Children's Hospital Pediatric Endocrinology department so we can continue to put on events that will make a difference in our patient's lives. Even just $5-10 will contribute towards a meal for an attendee at one of our events! I appreciate any contribution in advance and am SO looking forward to 26.2 in October!!

TLDR: I'm a pediatric diabetes educator running the 2026 Chicago Marathon to raise money for events we put together through Advocate to support our patients and families with diabetes!