Serving by Cheering

When you have young kids, it’s difficult to find good family “service” opportunities that are quick and effective. Well, I found the perfect one this morning — standing on the fringes of a marathon and cheering thousands of runners as they pass by.

I’ve done this on prior occasions and as they often say about volunteering, you get so much more out than you put in. That was certainly true this morning.

Initially, my wife and I both signed up to run the half marathon. About 2 weeks ago, I had a health issue and decided it wasn’t the best idea to push my body (that’s a separate post). I was bummed but decided to make the most of the circumstances by taking our 3 kids out and having them cheer on their Mom (plus thousands of our fellow city dwellers).

It started this morning around 7am. We made 4 posters, with gimmicky phrases such as:

• Future Marathoner 2037 (held by my 2 year old — crowd favorite)
• Press For Power (great to engage runners)
• I Pulled Daddy Out of Bed Just for This!? (good for quick laughs)

After a quick breakfast, plenty of snacks, a sleeping bag, and a thermos of hot chocolate, we went to stake out a good viewing spot. Planning here is key. Map out a good spot the day before and make sure there is easy parking and avoid overly crowded spots along the course…