| Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB) is a rare genetic skin disease that causes the skin to be so fragile that the slightest friction can cause severe blistering–inside and outside the body. Today there is no cure. Severe forms of EB cause patients to live with constant pain and scarring. The worst forms of EB lead to eventual disfigurement, disability, and often early death. (Source DEBra)
My SIL Heather has EB. As a surprise for her birthday last month, her friends Anna (pictured below) and Robert Licari organized a run in Heather’s honor, proceeds to benefit EB research. Robert gives Anna most of the credit, but i know they both worked ultra-hard in getting ready for it. When Nathan and Heather found a job opportunity in Alaska, the surprise had to be spilled several weeks early. Heather was deeply moved. Though they had to pack up and move that same month, they made plans for a quick trip back to Asheville to be there for the race. |
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| The day dawned crisp and cold, with temperatures near freezing. This is the type of weather that is very common for the NC mountains in the fall – cold at night, but beautiful days. This photo shows the frost covering some fallen leaves that morning. |
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| I planned to make a quick trip to Asheville to compete in the race. There were runners and walkers. I was one of the former, and i only brought shorts with me. Pre-race, i did what i could to keep warm, including turning myself into a ball on the ground. My mom and grandma were some of the walkers. They are bundled up, too! |
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| The course was at Carrier Park in Asheville. We started on a track, ran around once, then exited and completed two loops around the park. It was quite pretty. The course was also entirely flat, which is certainly nice. It took me until near the end of the second mile to completely warm up, but overall it was a pretty good race in the world of Audrey. I finished in 32:10, which was actually second in my age group! Ha! Nathan says i don’t have to admit that it was a small race, but i will anyway. They gave out medals, and Heather gave them out as the guest of honor. |
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| Grandma also placed in her age group. The two Audreys pose together showing off their medals. |
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| I’m so glad i made the trip. Sometimes it’s hard to justify going any distance to compete in a race, since there are so many of them held locally. But this was totally worth it. The group raised over $2600 for EB research, and i got to see Nathan and Heather once more before a long hiatus. (Note to Nathan and Heather: Twilight, Breaking Dawn 1 opens next November.) |
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| Nathan and Heather have had a full month. They have packed up their apartment, and driven across the country (seeing Mt Rushmore, Yellowstone, glaciers and countless animals who don’t realize that roads are for humans!). They arrived Friday afternoon to help with final race preparations, and caught a plane back to Alaska mere hours after the race ended. Now they’ll focus on getting settled into a new home and starting new jobs. Good luck to you both! |
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Nov 01 2010
November 2nd, 2010 1:01 am
Hey sexy lady! I can’t tell you how much it meant to me that you made the trip to participate in the race. It was a very special event and I loved sharing these moments with you. We will see you soon (definitely before the glorious opening of Breaking Dawn)! I love you Sis!
November 2nd, 2010 1:13 am
We had much fun at the race. Thanks for coming, it meant a lot to us both to see you there and to class up our race by running. By the time we got back to AK we were utterly exhausted as you might imagine, but it was all worth it. Thanks for the shout out blog.