When I was 8 years old, in the early 1980's, my father started “jogging.” It looked fun so I asked him to take me along (see photo above). We would start out at 6 a.m. before I went to school and he went to the hospital, where he was a practicing surgeon. My love of running began with those early morning jogs and continues today, more than 40 years later.

In 1984, at the age of 46, my father received a diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis. He was soon unable to run and had to make the painful decision to step away from his surgical practice. He's been managing life with this debilitating disease ever since. I am so proud of his resilience. 

In the spirit of the morning runs I shared with my dad, I will be competing in the NYC Marathon this November as a member of the MS Society team. My goal is to raise $10,000 to support the organization's efforts to understand and treat MS. I hope I can count on you to help fuel progress! The money you donate will drive groundbreaking research and services to ensure people affected by MS have the resources they need to live life to the fullest.  

“Mr. Peanus,” pen & ink and watercolor, 2021

Running with my dad in the early 1980’s