2024 Marine Corps Marathon with Team Semper K9

Team Semper K9 Leads the Way

Thank you so much for visiting my fundraising page! I'm a Clinical Psychologist, dog mom, and I've been a distance runner since I was 15 years old. My professional background is in treating complex trauma, personality disorders, and other co-morbid psychiatric and medical conditions that frequently accompany such diagnoses. Prior to opening up my private practice in 2019, I worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs as a Staff Psychologist, and in my private practice, I continue to provide specialty mental health care to the Veteran and active duty population.

I am so excited to be running the Marine Corps Marathon! I've forever been a middle-distance runner and favored the 10k. Back in November of 2023, I decided I wanted to attempt to qualify for the Boston Marathon (qualification time for my age group is 3:35).  I knew I needed to run a USATF-Certified race course to be able to submit a qualification time for the Fall of 2024 to run in the Boston Marathon in 2025. I hunkered down on my training and ran the St. Pete Distance Classic on 2/11/24. This was my first marathon, and I ended up finishing with a time of 3:19. While I was happy about my race time, I was even more grateful for how this training cycle and marathon changed me for the better. I've always found solace in running and racing. Both activities can be finite, linear, and provide an overwhelming sense of gratitude and feeling of efficacy. Training for the St. Pete Distance classic taught me so much. It taught me about community, tolerance for emotional distress--particularly making peace with grief, uncertainty, and loss, and it reminded me of how strong I am in my mind and body. I also realized that unlike the 10k or half marathon, the marathon can be full of unpredictability. Part of the appeal of this distance is the uncertainty for how one will fare during those 26.2 miles. I've realized that how you feel and perform during your training cycle isn't always indicative for how you perform on race day, because anything can happen at that distance when you push your body to run it's fastest for that long. And yet, I find that there's so much beauty in that uncertainty because you get to make contact with a version of yourself that only arises when you push your mind and body to extreme places.

I recently hired a running coach, Mr. Pardon Ndhlovu, who is an Olympic marathoner and phenomenl human being. He's going to be coaching me along the way as I compete in several races before I run Boston in 2025. We are so stoked about this upcoming training cycle leading into the Marine Corps Marathon, and I'm so excited to be partnerning with TempSemperK9 to raise money for an incredible cause. Thank you in advance for taking the time to visit my charity page.

Tons of love,

Steph