My Nonprofit Reviews

From Running In Fear To Running In Honor - Pasadena Pacers

San Jose City is a small city in the northern part of the Philippines. Children run around playing hide and seek until dusk. One may hear in the neighborhood, parents screaming their childrens’ names to come inside because it’s getting dark.
I was told that my parents divorced when I was only two months old. My father was abusive and my mother ran away. I rarely saw my mother while I was growing up. Out of my mother’s fear of returning, her sister, my Tita Elle, would visit me during that time.

My father was a drunk and an abusive person. He would beat my eldest sister with a two by four plank or a belt, or anything he could get his hands on whenever he got home and thought his house was not cleaned. My sister ran away and came to the United States of America with my mother, my older sister Leoren, a stepfather, and two half younger sisters.

Life comes with hardships and memories. After my sister had left, I inherited the abuse she was getting from my father. One night, my father came home drunk as always and told me to sit on his lap. I obeyed like a good son who only yearned for his father’s love. He asked if I cleaned his house and I responded with a yes. As we talked more, his hand landed between my legs. I wiggled to get free and stood up, stared him down and in my head, I punched him. I felt betrayed. I took off running towards the front of the house and towards the gate. My only thought was to escape the hell I was going through in that moment. I took off running, darting to exit to the gate as my Tita and Tito stood crying for me.

I ran for a very long time. I kept on running until I was a city away from San Jose City. I kept on looking back, with the thought that he was chasing after me. Every time I saw his image behind me, or so I thought, I would keep running. I kept running until the thought of not having a home, a bed to sleep, or food to eat dawned on me. I ran until I could not run anymore. I was a ten-year-old boy in a dark street with tears flowing down my cheeks at three in the morning. I turned around and went back home. By the time I got home, I was expecting my father and Tito to be out and gone looking for me. It was my Tito Teody that was gone. My Tita Consuelo hugged me tight, while my father was passed out asleep and snoring.

I learned not how to run, but I learned what I was capable of enduring as a person. My mother later took me to California, where I was reunited with my sisters. I began a fresh start as a kid. With my newfound talent, I joined the middle school track & field after the P.E. teacher witnessed me run the mile P.E. exam with the time of six minutes and thirty-six seconds. In high school, I excelled in track & field and cross-country. I took my talent with me as I joined the United Stated Marine Corps in 2007 as an infantry and was honorably discharged in 2011.

After taking a two-year break from running, I discovered the Pasadena Pacers through my friend Lara. The Pasadena Pacers is a group full of runners with positive vibes and they are all oozing with motivation. It was time that I made a come back. Although it was a slow come back having not run for two years, I started coming out joining the group every Saturday morning. Two months after my first run with the Pacers, I decided it was time to officially claim a slice of ownership by purchasing a Pacers singlet. Since my time running with the Pacers, I gained my confidence and speed back. The Pacers gave me reasons to run: focus on what is important in life, goals to achieve, and challenges to overcome.

I found a list of The Top Ten Marathons, dedicating each to someone in my family, a brother in arms, or someone that made an impact on making me the person I am today. Five months after joining the Pacers, I ran my first marathon, the Los Angeles Marathon, with the time of five hours and thirty minutes. Seven months after that, I ran Portland Marathon with the time of three hours and fifty-one minutes. I am thankful for having been introduced to the Pasadena Pacers and am glad I am now able to give back to the group by being one of the Pasadena Pacers Los Angeles Marathon 2016 training coaches.

I run for those who cannot fight. I run for my mother and those who suffers from being in an abusive relationship. I run for my brothers in arms I had the pleasure of serving with who did not make it back home. They are the reason that I can run and enjoy life freely. I run for my Tita Elle who died of an aneurism. It was her looks and similar features to my mother that gave me comfort as a child. It was her hugs and kisses that came closest to my mother’s. I run for my Tito Teody who died of a heart complication and did not have a fighting chance. It was him who taught me how to cook. He set an example for me to see that we all have options in this world and we can choose what we want to do in life. I run for my brother in law who died in a car accident due to poor weather condition when he was heading to work. It was him who showed me how to have fun. It was he and my eldest sister Krystina that would get me out of the house and show me how to have a great time in my pre-teenage years when I first came to the United States. I run for my sister Leoren who is suffering from multiple sclerosis. She taught me how to be strong and how to be stubborn and to keep on fighting even when hope seems to fade away. I run… for my Tita Consuelo who never smoked or drank alcohol and is now suffering from a stage-four lung cancer. It was her who taught me patience and to always do the right thing. To always treat others how I would want to be treated.

I run to inspire others…that no matter what or how big the obstacle is in your life right now, all you need is a pair of running shoes, a great group of people to run with and everything will be okay.

Learn how to join and support the Pasadena Pacers at www.pasadenapacers.org