Rocket Power: Sarah’s Run To Home Base

By Erica, Contributor, HockeyPub.com

Rocket Power is an initiative pioneered by Rocket Sports Media designed to mobilize hockey fans to support charitable organizations and to get involved in their communities. We are proud to help raise awareness with a series of continuing features intended to spotlight members of the hockey community who are making a difference.

MONTREAL, QC. — Sarah Connors is a Boston native, through and through. She loves her hometown teams and runs a Bruins website, Stanley Cup of Chowder. Her latest fundraising endeavor is a road race benefiting American veterans with traumatic brain injuries. She’ll be running this race on Saturday, May 4, mere weeks after the tragic events that occurred at this year’s Boston Marathon, and nothing can stop her.

Tell us a bit about this event.

Sarah (right) with a friend at Fenway Park.

The Run to Home Base is a 9-kilometer race, which ends at Fenway Park – as the last part of it, you get to actually cross home plate inside the park. It’s very cool. It takes place on Saturday, May 4 (so soon!) and it raises money for the Home Base Program, which helps veterans with combat stress/traumatic brain injuries and their families. I hadn’t heard about it before this year, so this is my first time taking part.

How did you choose this cause and this event?

Honestly the idea of crossing home plate as the end of the race was the hook, but once I realized what the cause was, I had to sign up immediately. I’ve had a friend die overseas, so any time there’s an effort to help out veterans and their families I’m inclined to help out.

How many races have you taken part in before this one?

A bunch. I ran some 5Ks while I was in St. Louis, and even one 4K (Tap N’ Run!) but I’ve also run the Boston Marathon (2008) and the Go! St. Louis Half Marathon (2012).

What were things like for you after the Boston Marathon this year? How did that affect your training?

Well I obviously couldn’t run my regular route for about a week – I love running up Boylston, it’s a busy street with so much vibrance and energy (and usually a ton of people out walking their dogs, which I love!) In all honesty, I didn’t train at all the whole week it happened. It was too stressful and draining to have so much be happening in my city and really in the few-blocks radius of where I live (I actually work very close to Copley Square). The first time I went running was actually the day they caught the guys who did it. I was going stir-crazy sitting in my house during the shelter-in-place order, so around 4pm when nothing had happened for a few hours, I finally said screw it and went running along the Charles River. I really needed to go for a run that day. Turns out the shelter-in-place order was lifted while I was out, so that was cool.

I didn’t, because if there’s anything Boston’s proven to be good at it’s not letting anything stop us from continuing to live our lives! I haven’t heard anything about increased security, but I did get an email assuring runners that the run is still on. I don’t know of anyone who has dropped out of the race. If anything, it’s given us an incentive to run more.

Do you have a fundraising goal?

I only have a few days left but right now the goal is just to get that number as high as it will go! If I could get over $1,500 that’d be great!

If you’d like to support Sarah with a donation or view her progress, you can visit her fundraising page.

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The Red Sox Foundation and Massachusetts General Hospital Home Base Program serves Iraq & Afghanistan veterans and military families affected by the “invisible wounds of war” — post traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury.

Mission

The Home Base Program: provides clinical care and support services for service members, veterans and families throughout New England; offers community and clinical education about the “invisible wounds of war” and the challenges facing military families; and conducts research to improve understanding and treatment of post traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury. It is estimated that one in three Iraq and Afghanistan veterans experience one of these injuries.

Are you planning to take part in a fundraiser or community event? Email erica[at]allhabs.net if you’d like to be interviewed for an upcoming Rocket Power spotlight!

Tags: Boston, Charity, featured, Fenway Park, Home Base Program, Massachusetts General Hospital, military veterans, Red Sox Foundation, Rocket Power, run