About Me

My name is Jessica and my Race4Awareness is to shed light on Functional Gastrointestinal and Motility Disorder. I love to dance, to travel, the wilderness, large bodies of water, and I love to run through Golden Gate Park. I am fortunate every day to have good health, a job I enjoy, a safe home in a fabulous city, and great community of family and friends. I do not take these things for granted.

This is why I will run for those who cannot—like my aunt who struggles from not one, but three motility disorders simultaneously: gastroparesis; small bowel dysmotility; and sphinctor of the oddi dysfunction. For the last six years, her condition has rendered this beautiful young woman incapacitated 24/7 with nausea, weakness, lack of appetite, abdominal pain, and increased pain after bowel movements (yes, I’m talking poo here). There is not a cure, no medications work, and she has seen dozens of specialists. GI disorders affect millions of people of all ages, women, men, and children. Yet much still remains unknown and research is severely underfunded.

This is my first marathon ever and it has been a personal goal for the last 10 years. I appreciate you supporting me by taking an interest in my cause, raising awareness, or providing support in a form that is right for you.

Please follow my training on my blog!

Start: 31 Aug 2010, End: 5 Dec 2010 California Int’l Marathon

About Me

My name is Chris McCoy and my Race4Awareness is focused now on Bipolar Schizophrenia. My sister Teri has been diagnosed with this illness and as a family, we've struggled with how to help her. The side effects of this illness make it very difficult for her to integrate into society and families like ours have similar problems helping their loved ones -- but once again, Race4Awareness is here to help.

My sister was a very talented musician (played the flute in both concert and jazz bands during high school). Unfortunately her illness led her astray and her dreams of becoming a musician have been sufficiently hampered by her disease. On behalf of my sister, on behalf of my loving parents who have tried all they can to as parents to help my sister and on behalf of any other family who struggles helping their loved ones with bipolar schizophrenia, I Race4Awareness for Bipolar Schizophrenia.

My mother helped me identify a perfect cause for this Race: "The Sean Castello Foundation" (http://www.seancostellofund.org/) in which Sean Costello--while being a very successful jazz musician--struggled with Bipolar Schizophrenia until his unfortunate death in 2008. Being that my race involves my passion for guitar, I hope that I capture Sean's spirit and give my sister a chance to re-ignite hers by playing Guitarra Española here in Madrid, España.

Awareness is crucial for helping people with Bipolar Schizophrenia because many victims ostracize themselves with their behavior (losing job opportunities, friends and often times putting their lives at risk) and their families struggle because they keep try solving this problem themselves; embarrased to seek help of any form. Thus more awareness could potentially allow society to understand the problems and challenges of Bipolar Schizophrenics and it is my priviledge to play guitar to help make this happen!

Hand out R4A Flyers: PDF