Running the Boston Marathon is a crowning achievement for many road racers, but Tom O'Donnell of Apex felt especially elated earlier this month when he lined up among the other 22,000 athletes for the prestigious event.
Three years earlier, O'Donnell was diagnosed with a brain tumor, and after undergoing surgery and treatment at the Preston Robert
Tisch Brain Tumor Center at Duke University Medical Center, he made a vow to savor life, to push his body, to steel his mind. So he ran. And ran and ran.
"I thought, 'What if I can't run ever again?'" O'Donnell says. "Running became a privilege. I felt really alive. I liked the way it made me feel - I loved it."
Just six weeks after his first surgery, O'Donnell entered a 5K race, and he has been running ever since, culminating in his qualification to run in Boston this year. Fresh off that heady experience, O'Donnell says he is looking forward to entering this Saturday's Angels Among Us road race in Durham, which benefits brain tumor research at Duke's Tisch Center.
In previous years, he would challenge friends and loved ones to donate money to his Angels team, collecting an impressive $2,000 to $3,000. But this year, pinning his fundraising to his Boston Marathon run, his total soared to $38,000.
"I never dreamed it would be that much," he says.
The contribution will help organizers achieve their $1.8 million fundraising goal for the 19th annual Angels Among Us event, which also includes a family walk through the Sarah P. Duke Gardens. All proceeds benefit the Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center.
"People come from all over the country to participate in this race," says event organizer Ellen Stainback. "We have families from as far away as Oklahoma, Iowa and Florida. But all the proceeds from the race go directly to research needs at the brain tumor center at Duke."
Brain tumors are diagnosed in about 22,000 people a year in the United States - and about 13 percent of cases are in children, according to the National Cancer Institute. The prognosis varies widely depending on the type of tumor, with some being completely curable and others having a median survival of less than 12 months.
For O'Donnell, the prognosis looks good. With little rest after the grueling race in Boston - temperatures neared 90 degrees this year and took a toll on many of the runners - he is looking forward to his next challenge. And this weekend's run.
"There are many reasons why people run," he says. "I run to give others hope. I run for those who are unable to. I run because I can. I cannot think of a better reason."
To learn more about the event, call (919) 684-4784.