Run, Jack, Run!
Run, Jack, Run!
jack
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Mikala Elizabeth Gibson Smith
You may remember Mikala's story...if not...our first grandchild, Mikala, was born on February 16, 2007 with a diaphragmatic hernia which meant she had a hole inside of her tiny chest. Her liver was pushed out of position and one of her lungs was not properly inflated. She lived in the NICU of the Penn State Hershey Children's Hospital, a Children's Miracle Network hospital. On her 24th day, she had surgery. On her 25th day she breathed on her own without the ECMO machine which had recirculated her blood and provided her oxygen to aid her breathing. On her 26th day she took her last breath.
To honor Mikala in August 2007 I ran Mikala's Miracle 26, a little more than 26 miles to finish at our RE/MAX American Dream Golf Classic at the Hunt Valley Golf Club.
In August 2008, I ran Mikala's Miracle 50K linking our three RE/MAX American Dream offices by starting in Bel Air then running to our office in Perry Hall then on to our office in Timonium to then finish once again at our RE/MAX American Dream Golf Classic.
In August 2009, I ran Mikala's Miracle 72K starting in the rain on Saturday night, August 22 in Delta, Pennsylvania running overnight to finish the next morning in the bright sunshine at Johns Hopkins Children's Center in Baltimore.
Two years ago on October 2, I ran Mikala's Magical Miracle Run...two races on the same day at Walt Disney World...a 5 kilometer race at seven in the morning followed by a half marathon at ten that night!
Last year, I ran five half marathons in ten weeks! Providence, Rhode Island, the Woodrow Wilson Bridge Half Marathon from Mt. Vernon, Virginia to National Harbor, Maryland, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Baltimore, and Hershey, Pennsylvania!
Over these first five years, thanks to incredibly generous donors, more than $29,000 has been raised for Children's Miracle Network/Johns Hopkins Children's Center.
So, where will I run this year in memory of Mikala?
N E W Y O R K C I T Y !!!!
Yes, this year, five of us, the first-ever “Mikala’s Miracle Team,” make history on Sunday, November 4 as we travel to America's biggest city to run America’s biggest marathon, one of the world’s five major marathons, through the five boroughs of New York City, the ING New York City Marathon!
Click "Jack's Training Log" page to follow my progress. Sign up for email updates by filling in the blanks under "Keep up with Jack."
What Can You Do?
Will you make a donation to honor Mikala's memory?
Make a fast, easy, and secure donation! Just click here:
Or, please write out a check for $25, $50, $100 or more to Johns Hopkins Children's Center. Send it to me, Jack Beach, at 21 Powhurst Ct., Nottingham, MD 21236.
Our "Mikala's Miracle Team" goal is to raise $12,500. Help me reach my personal goal...to raise $2,500!
Each dollar you give is 100% tax deductible as it goes to our Children's Miracle Network hospital here in Baltimore, the world-renowned Johns Hopkins Children's Center.
Last June I closed out my real estate business. For the last 16 years of the 22 years I was in business I was affiliated with the most incredible firm, RE/MAX American Dream! RE/MAX American Dream agents continue to donate by pledging $5 or more per transaction to Children's Miracle Network. 100% of the agents, every agent, each office! RE/MAX American Dream was the first RE/MAX firm in the Baltmore area to receive the "Miracle Office" designation. Click on the "Donors" page to see the names of these caring RE/MAX American Dream "Miracle" agents.
Thanks in advance for your generous support in memory of Mikala and for all the kids at the Johns Hopkins Children's Center.
"There are two ways to live your life - one is as though nothing is a miracle, the other is as though everything is a miracle." -- Albert Einstein
Together we can make miracles happen.
Run, Jack, Run!
jack
