Kristen's Marathon for GIST
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Kristen Lester braved a stormy day to run in the Boston Marathon while carrying the names of many GIST patients, all to earn donations for cancer reseerach at Dana Farber Cancer Institute.  Amazingly, she had never tried distance running until 7 months ago! Her effort is astounding.

Though the run is now over, it is never too late to send a contribution!  You can do so at Kristen's web site (http://xrl.us/runhard) or you can mail a contribution to Kristen Lester, 161 Old Norwich Road, Quaker Hill CT  06375.  

Kristen undertook this huge effort for her sister Theresa, who has GIST.  In March Kristen explained her project as follows:

"My sister, Theresa, has been diagnosed with GIST.  Her initial onset was 15 years ago, when the cancer was diagnosed as LM Sarcoma.  She was apparently cancer free until a tumor showed up in her liver 1 year ago.  She had 80% of her liver removed, but her doctors subsequently found numerous other tumors in her abdomen.  She is currently on Sutent, and is being treated at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

It has become my mission to raise funds for cancer research at Dana-Farber and to raise the general public's awareness of GIST.  As part of this effort, I am running the Boston marathon with the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge this year.  I'm about 5 weeks away from the marathon, and it is starting to look as though I will actually be able to run it!  (I wasn't a runner before I began this endeavor 7 months ago.)  For me, running has been a very helpful way to work out my anger about my sister's cancer.  I also frequently think about what she is going through, and realize that whatever pain I am in towards the end of the long run is nothing compared to what she goes through everyday.

Due to the media attention surrounding my endeavor, I find that I am in a wonderful position to raise awareness of GIST.  During each interview I have done for newspapers or television, I have been asked what type of cancer my sister has.  I usually go through 1 minute or so education session on GIST, and how recent research has made such a difference in the disease.  Most of the time, this explanation makes  it into the article or television spot that I am doing. 

I contacted the GSI operating committee last week regarding this matter, and they felt it was appropriate to approach the GIST community with my request.  I am asking for your assistance in achieving my goal of raising $4000 for Dana-Farber this year.  The funds that I raise are not going directly towards GIST research, but do go towards an innovative cancer research program at Dana-Farber.  Besides raising $4,000, I hope to honor at least 100 cancer survivors/victims by carrying their names with me during the marathon.  I would be particularly honored to carry the names of GIST patients with me, due to my special awareness of that type of cancer.  Whether or not you choose to donate, please provide me with the name of someone you would like me to honor on April 16th."   

Here is Kristen's message to the GIST Support International listserv members after she finished her marathon...

"Dear GIST Community,
I am including below the thank you note that I just sent out to my family, friends and supporters.  A lot of you have already seen this, so I apologize for the double postings.  I'm extending a special thank you to the GIST community.  The amount of emotional and financial support I received from all of you was truly overwhelming.  I was honored to carry the names of so many GIST patients with me as I ran.  Thank you for your generous support and encouragement!
 
April 16th started out like all my long run days.  As always, I woke up before the family, grabbed a cup of coffee, and checked the weather (yikes).  A few differences in my morning routine though, set this day apart.   
 
After putting on my running gear, I took out a piece of paper and wrote my sister's name in ½ inch letters in the center of the paper (THERESA). I then wrote my grandmother's name, and the name of my husband's grandmother, and the name of my friend's daughter, and went on to write the names of every other person whose name has been given to me over the last 6 months, most of them GIST patients.  When I ran out of room on one side of the paper, I filled the other side.  With each name I wrote, I thought about that person's struggle with cancer.  I thought about how they must have felt when they heard the news, how their friends and family rallied behind them.  I thought about their physical and emotional pain, and I thought about how some of those people are no longer with us.  I thought that it would be really nice if my little jog in a freak spring Nor'easter was no longer necessary. 

Then I laminated the list to keep it dry, pinned it to the inside of my singlet, laced up my shoes and got ready to run. 
 
The first 5 miles were beautiful, easy, and mostly downhill.  It wasn't long before my knee started acting up though, and by mile 8 I was beginning to realize that this wasn't going to go well.  By mile 10 I was in excruciating pain.  I knew I was really in trouble when the dancing Elvis' passed me, blasting Blue Suede Shoes.  Then came Captain America.
 
I would like to tell you that the thought of the names I was carrying kept me from the temptation of quitting.  The truth is that the thought of quitting never even entered my mind.  Never.  I knew that whatever pain I was feeling was inconsequential compared to the pain that cancer patients go through.  And so I kept on going - past the Wellesley scream tunnel, on up through the hills of Newton, down the hills into Boston, and finally into Kenmore square and across the finish line.  Every step of the way I thought about those names.  Every step of the way I was cheered on by the crowd.  I must have heard "Go Dana-Farber" a million times, and I high-fived everyone who said it.  They cheered me on like I was one of the elites, just because of the name on my singlet.  The miles flew by, one after another.  The best feeling of my life was coming down that last 1.2 mile stretch with everyone screaming for me, Citgo sign in sight, and a huge crowd from Dana-Farber on my right.  I high-fived all of them, too. 
 
The day was a huge success.  By midnight last night I had met all of my fundraising goals for 2007, thanks to your generous support.  I still have one fundraiser left to go, so it is clear that I will exceed my financial goals this year.  We really made a difference this year, all of us.  I continue to be  awed and humbled by your generosity. 
 
Thank you all again for your kind words and emotional support over the past weeks and months.  I felt like you were all running with me yesterday, and I truly couldn't have done it without you. 
 
And that leaves me with just one thing left to say: 
See you next year!!!!!"
 
Kristen
Run hard, be strong, think big!