Essex, VT, woman prepares to fulfill dying wish to run the Boston Marathon
Mary Williams will run the 128th Boston Marathon under the adaptive program and for charity
Mary Williams will run the 128th Boston Marathon under the adaptive program and for charity
Mary Williams will run the 128th Boston Marathon under the adaptive program and for charity
In less a week, thousands of runners from all over the world, including from our region, will flock to Boston for the 128th Boston Marathon. Mary Williams, of Essex, VT, will be one of them.
Training for the Boston Marathon is hard enough, but Mary is doing it with brain cancer.
“Some days my stomach just feels off, or there’s a lot of fatigue, or sometimes there’s dizziness. I’ve dealt with vertigo," said Williams.
When Williams was diagnosed with grade two oligodendroglioma two years ago, her doctor told her she had 10 years left to live.
“It was like all these feelings of like ‘this is unfair.’ My mom had died a year prior to that, which was really hard to deal with. Then, I think after the initial shock, I had the feeling of like, ‘Well, at least I have 10 years," she said.
With a "glass half full" mentality, Williams created a bucket list. This April 15, she'll check off number one on the list: to run the world's oldest annual marathon.
Williams will be a part of the adaptive program, running alongside her coach and boyfriend, Eric. She's also running for charity with the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, where she's receiving treatment.
“It is truly inspiring just to see the support that runners such as Mary and our whole team receives from their communities," said Jan Ross, the assistant vice president of running programs for the Dana Farber Cancer Institute.
Charity runners with the Dana Farber Marathon Challenge have a fundraising commitment of $10,000. William's goal is to raise $26,200, and she's already surpassed it.
“I have so much gratitude for all the support that I’ve had form my friends, my family, my co-workers. And there’s just a lot of people rallying behind me," she said.
Williams said she is taking life one "stride" at a time and living like each day is her last.
"You may feel the best you feel today than you will tomorrow so just don’t wait. Don’t waste your life."
You can donate to Mary's fundraising page here.