Richmond Military Society 5K to support the AWP

Last weekend I was able to go to Richmond and visit with a bunch of my AWP friends and run a 5K that raised money for the AWP. I considered it my opportunity to not only benefit from the work the AWP does, but also help support that continued work. There were flags that lined the race route that were purchased to honor fallen service members- Nick and I bought 3, one for Mike, and two for his fallen friends. I ran the race, which was beneficial for me in several ways. Again I participated in the event for the AWP (since I don't golf and opt out of the golf outing") and since I am really trying to maintain this running habit I've created, it gave me something to train for. The actual race was chilly, and hilly, but hey- whatever! I ran it and I finished and it was a good workout and a great cause.



The other major benefit of this race was the opportunity to meet a few widows that I hadn't met before, namely Beth and Laura, who I have been talking to for quite some time but without meeting in person. Laura I actually met online while Mike was deployed through a military spouse message board. When Mike was killed she reached out to let me know she lost her boyfriend in Iraq and that she would love to talk about anything and everything I needed. She was the very first person I knew who had gone through something like this and it was wonderful to finally meet her. Beth and I have been talking through email and on the phone for a while as well. She is one of my few fiance friends and she is so down to earth I love it. I am glad we got the opportunity to share a room in VA so that we could talk and get to know each other even better. I love her perspective and the way she looks at everything. She definitely makes me feel less crazy :) She has also been a big encouragement in the running I have taken on. She is a runner and she helped me get through my 3/4 mile rut when I was training for the 10 miler, and she sent me some encouraging music to keep me going! Thank God for my amazing friends :)

Beth and Me


I run with my men- Mike's on the Left. Nick's on the Right.


One of my favorites from the race day!