Running the Boston Marathon for Children’s Hospital Boston — and Hailey

Less than six months from now, on April 17, 2006, I’ll be pounding the pavement once again from Hopkinton to Boston, determinedly putting one foot in front of another for more than 26 long, arduous miles.

It’ll be the 8th time I’ve taken the same exhausting journey. And I’ll be tired and sore most of the way. But as I’ve said before, it doesn’t get any better than crossing the finish line of what is arguably the most prestigious road race in the world, the Boston Marathon. I’ve enjoyed running since I was just a little boy, so for me, running Boston is still the thrill of a lifetime, a childhood dream come remarkably true.

I’m lucky, though. Some children’s dreams are mercilessly dashed due to dread, debilitating diseases and disorders that you and I can’t even begin to imagine. Their challenge isn’t a marathon – it is life itself, one difficult day at a time, courageously contending with poor health, waiting for a cure, hoping to prevail despite seemingly overwhelming odds.

It’s for these children that I’m running the Boston Marathon in 2006. Yes, as much as I’m excited to be among the marathon field of some 20,000 athletes, it’s much more important that I’ll be running as one of the few, proud members of Children’s Hospital’s Miles for Miracles Team Boston, raising funds for one of the best pediatric hospitals in the country, located right here in Boston.

Please help me help make dreams come true for more boys and girls. Please sponsor my Boston Marathon run with a gift of $25, $15, $50 or more to Children’s Hospital Boston. I’ll be so grateful for your support. And so will the hospital.

To make a secure, online donation, simply click here or follow these directions…

1. Go to http://www.childrenshospital.org/bostonmarathon.
2. Click on “Sponsor a Runner/Give Online” on the right-hand side
of the screen.
3. Enter my name, “Bob Cargill” and/or my Profile ID (CB0022) in
the “Search for a Runner to Sponsor” fields.
4. Click on my name, “Bob Cargill,” under Search Results, in the middle of the page.
5. Donate to Children’s Hospital Boston.

Of course, if you prefer, you may write a check – payable to Children’s Hospital Boston – and return it to my attention at 33 Oakwood Avenue, Sudbury, MA 01776.

Hailey, 7, My Children’s Hospital Boston Patient Partner

Your generosity will help Children’s Hospital Boston help children like my patient partner, Hailey (see photo above), a cute, little girl living with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI), a rare genetic disorder – characterized by bones that break easily, often from little or no apparent cause – for which there is not yet a cure.

Imagine, Hailey is only seven (she was born on May 26, 1998), but she’s already suffered 51 broken bones and undergone a number of serious surgeries. Thanks to Children’s Hospital, however, Hailey’s OI is under control, and she’s living her young life to the fullest.

Your sponsorship of my run will mean a great deal to me, but it’ll mean even more to the doctors, nurses and staff at Children’s Hospital Boston – and the patients in their care.

So please give us as much as you possibly can – today. I’ll appreciate it. The hospital will appreciate it. And, most of all, the children (especially Hailey) will appreciate it. It is on their behalf that I just can’t thank you enough.

Bob

P.S. When you sponsor my Boston Marathon run with a contribution of at least $30, you’ll be entered into a drawing to win one of several fabulous gift certificates donated by Boston-area restaurants and stores.

That’s right, between now and March 1, 2006, not only do I plan to raise thousands of dollars for Children’s Hospital Boston, but I’m also going to approach the local business community about donating valuable “in-kind” gifts that I can “pay forward” to at least a few of my generous supporters.

So please sponsor my participation in the Boston Marathon with a gift of $30 or more to Children’s Hospital Boston. I’ll be so grateful for your support. And if you’re one of the winners of my prize drawing on March 1, 2006, maybe I’ll treat you to dinner, or a pair of movie passes, a free oil change, etc. Good luck. And – much more importantly – thank you for your good deed.

Note: Thank you, by the way, for indulging me while I share all this with you. It’s my own personal fundraising campaign — which I do hope you can support — on behalf of Children’s Hospital Boston. To read about the other four times I’ve run the Boston Marathon for charity, click here, here, here, here and here.

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