Our Collective Stories

For Brian and Amy Contreras, running is very much a family affair. They trained for the Sydney Marathon together. Brian was Amy’s running coach. Amy described herself as Brian’s “hype woman.” Their seven-year-old daughter has grown up around the sport so much that she assumes running marathons is simply a thing adults do. “Our kid thinks it’s so normal to run marathons,” Amy laughed. What she doesn’t know yet is that her parents’ paths to the marathon starting line have looke

For Stephanie Williams, running has never been only about finish lines, race times, or medals. It has been something she can come back to when life feels heavy—a steady companion alongside therapy and the other tools she uses to care for her mental health. This fall, Stephanie will line up for the Chicago Marathon with Team Still I Run. It will be her fourth time running Chicago, but this one carries a little more weight: Chicago will be Stephanie’s 10th marathon, and she kne

Sue Pujdak has been a runner since her early twenties, but the role running plays in her life today is very different from when she first laced up. A former competitive swimmer, Sue initially turned to running because she was ready for a change of scenery. “I got really tired of looking at the bottom of the pool,” she said. Running gave her the chance to get outside and spend time in nature. As the miles added up, she discovered something else she hadn’t necessarily been look