Greg Pasternack

In so many ways I believe this. As a photographer I was frequently told that being shy would guarantee that I miss a shot. As a student in academia we only improve by understanding how we might fail—something I did a lot of. When I began running my outlook on life changed significantly. I was a very negative person never seeing how things could possibly be better. Change did not seem to be my responsibility so there was no reason not to be lazy. However, that changed entirely when I began running. As my negative attitudes about things crumbled so did that barrier that stopped me from trying to make change. Almost immediately once I started running, I smiled more. I took on tasks with such ease. It seemed as though nothing was wrong. People began telling me that I had made an unbelievable change. Even my doctor noted that I went from being obese to being in physical shape comparable only to professional athletes. Then a few years later, while away from home, I got some news for which no running could have prepared me.

 

In 2008, I found out that my cousin was diagnosed with colorectal cancer. My family is not exceptionally close, but I am so fond of this one cousin that being told this news was a real blow to the gut. I thought about her beautiful daughter who was only three years old. How would this affect her? I hung up the phone and froze. “What about her pregnancy?” I thought. I did not even want to know the answer. The next time I spoke with my mother, she told me that the pregnancy, in it’s first trimester, would be aborted as chemotherapy and other treatments would be very detrimental—deadly even--on the baby. Frozen again, I thought there should be something that I could do, but of course in a situation like that I was powerless. Almost in a trance, I put on my running gear and set out on a two hour run getting lost in my thoughts and in back roads. 

 

I know I’ll keep running for a long time, but it became apparent to me that for a long time I was doing it without a purpose. Endure to Cure has given me that purpose. The purpose is that my efforts are going to combine with other Team Endure to Cure members to help fully-fund a two-year survivorship study at the renowned University of Chicago Comer Children's Hospital.  I know why I am raising a sweat and you know where your contributions will be going.  For more details on the study and why it is so vitally important, please click here.  No contribution is too small and I thank you in advance for your support.

 

Thank you!

Greg