So i signed up to run.

Dearest Friends and Family,

You may want to be seated when I tell you this...For those of you who know me, know that I have emphatically said that the only way you would see me running is if it were from a very sharp knife, but I, will be running a MARATHON this year! That's right! I will be participating in the Amsterdam 2008 Marathon on October 19, 2008...running 26.2 miles! I am taking part in a six-month training program and I am running a little farther each week...in total I expect to log nearly 500 miles. It's all part of the National AIDS Marathon Training Program, which raises money for the AIDS Foundation of Chicago.And well I have been saying for a while that i want to give back to someone and I have decided that this is what i want to do. Yes, i know it seems rediculus, but i have a running partner, Jamil,  and we are doing this! I reciently found out that a friend of mine has been diagnosed with HIV. I am running for her!

Despite recent advances in the treatment of AIDS, the epidemic is far from over. More than one million Americans, and 40 million others around the world, are now living with HIV. And the rate of AIDS in the Chicago Metropolitan area has jumped by more than 400% over the past decade.

The money raised from the AIDS Marathon Training Program will allow the AIDS Foundation of Chicago to fund direct medical care, food, housing, and other vital AIDS services — to help keep people with HIV/AIDS alive until there's a cure. This is why I am committed to raise at least $4,200 before Friday, July 25, 2008 (although of course I would like to raise lots more). I'm asking for your support.

I would be so grateful for any donation you can make to help me meet this goal. It's so easy to make a donation (so no excuses!), just click on the link to the left of this message. It only takes a few moments to make a contribution. Together, we can take pride in improving the lives of those suffering here in our community.

As you all can probably imagine, this is certainly the most physically challenging task I have ever attempted in my life - how am I going to give up my Sunday morning naps? But I am confident that with your support I can make it to the finish line. Thank you so much for supporting me in this huge undertaking. When I cross that Start Line on October 19, 2008 , with the roar of the crowds beside me, on my way to complete the marathon...I'll know that you helped me, and so many others, along the way.

With many thanks, 
Lisa Whiting

P.S. If you want to share my bolg and the donation site, www.aidsmarathon.com for donations, with your friends and family (hint hint), after donating there, you can click "Email this page to a friend" towards the top left-hand side of the page and it will send the link to the page to them. Again THANKS!!!

*here i go!