One Run For Boston: Woodbury Runner Runs For The Cause

 

Like the rest of the world, when Woodbury resident Sarah Cenatiempo watched as the streets of Boston went from a festive Marathon Day into a nightmare situation in the minutes that followed the bombings last April, she knew she wanted to do something, anything, to help.

So this year, on April 12, she became a link in the chain of thousands of other runners across the country and ran part of the Connecticut leg of the One Run For Boston, the longest continuous cross country relay race, to show support and raise money for the victims of the bombing.

Sarah joined a group of runners in Bridgeport and together they made the 8.5 mile trek through the streets of Bridgeport and on into Milford and carried the baton for part of its 3,300 journey from California to Boston. The One Run For Boston relay, which began on March 16 in Santa Monica, finished in Boston at about 5: 30 p.m. on April 13 with more than 2,000 runners having run 336 stages in 28 days across 14 states.

"This race is an amazing display of what the running community can accomplish when they work together," Sarah said. "To coordinate a relay that goes cross country is pretty incredible."

Sarah is part of a group of women runners called, "Girls Gone Miles" and was able run this leg of the One Run For Boston with two other runners from her group. "We were, as a group, all affected by the Boston Marathon bombings deeply," she said. "We needed to do our part and give back to our fellow runners and help however we could. Being part of this race was the perfect opportunity to show our support and raise money for those injured."

Sarah raised $450 for the cause and was at one point running with the American flag tightly, and proudly, held in her hands.

"It was a perfect day to run," Sarah said of her Saturday morning start. "The sun was just coming up as we started our leg. It was awesome. I felt so proud to be a small part of this amazing run."

The first One Run For Boston, which happened in July of 2013, was the brainchild of several running friends from England who put their heads together to come up with a way to help the victims of the bombing. The first ever coast to coast relay, with 2,00 runners, raised over $90,000 last July. This year's goal is $1 million.

For more information, go to www.onerunforboston.org