Hi Friends and Family,

I am so happy to be running my third marathon with Tedy's Team, this time for the New York City marathon in November 2024.

Thank you so much for taking the time to support me on this journey. My goal is to raise over $7,500 for Tedy's Team and every donation counts.

I first found Tedy's Team after my dad passed away unexpectedly from heart issues in July 2021. I was struggling with grief and looking for a way to make sense of his loss. Right before Christmas 2021, I had an epiphany. I woke up in the middle of the night and it was clear as day - I was going to run the Boston marathon in his honor. After quickly realizing I was never going to qualify on my own (needing to run under 3:00 hours which is about 7 minutes per mile) I turned my attention to running with a charity. At 3am I read every single charity team description, and the description for Tedy's Team jumped off the page. It felt like they were speaking directly to me.

I (naively, now I realize) only applied for Tedy's Team and crossed my fingers. Fortunately they accepted me, and I found a community of amazing individuals that have become like another family for me. Every single team member has somehow been affected or has a family member or close friend who has been affected by the devastating impacts of stroke and heart disease. I had such an amazing experience running and fundraising with them for the 2022 Boston Marathon that I decided to apply again for the 2023 Boston Marathon. With the amazing support of family and friends I was able to raise over $10,000 each year for Tedy's Team, raising valuable and needed money supporting victims of stroke and heart disease.

This past July 2023 my family experienced another devastating loss when my older brother Chris passed away suddenly. Chris had struggled privately with alcoholism for the last decade, and finally lost his battle with it. He was so brave and persistent in his desire to overcome the disease, spending many months in rehab, halfway homes, participating in AA, and making it 4 years in a row sober before we lost our dad. Unfortunately as anyone who has been affected directly or indirectly by alcoholism knows, sometimes the disease can be too much. I am so proud of him for all the effort he put in to fight for himself. 

After taking some time to process this terrible loss, I realized that he would want me to share his story to shed a little bit of light on the terrible disease that is alcoholism in the hope that it might help someone else by realizing they are not alone. I know he would also want his loss to have meaning. He was a big supporter of mine the past two years as I ran the two Boston Marathons with Tedy's Team to raise money for our dad. And running was an even bigger part of his past. He was actually the one who inspired me to even come out for the cross country team my Freshman year of high school, since at the time he was a Senior and was one of the best runners on the team (and in the state) and a school record holder. He went on to run competitively for Bryant University Varsity Cross Country and Track in college as well.

If you've read this far, thank you. Thank you for taking the time to read about my journey. I know all too well that training for a marathon is an absolute grind and a tremendous amount of work, but it's nothing compared to losing someone close to you. I am so grateful to have the opportunity to allow my losses have meaning by raising money for Tedy's Team to help other stroke and heart disease survivors get the help they need in making their own comeback journey. And I am grateful to have an amazing community of friends and family who support me by doing that. 

From the bottom of my hear - Thank you!

Brian

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The mission of Tedy's Team is to raise awareness for stroke and heart disease while supporting survivors on their journey, giving them a means for a comeback!

Tedy's Team was originally founded in 2005, when Tedy Bruschi, former linebacker for the New England Patriots suffered a stroke shortly after winning his 3rd Super Bowl and just days after returning from his first Pro Bowl. to learn more about who we are, please see our website, www.tedysteam.org.

We are honored to be part of the Official Charity Program of the TCS NYC Marathon for 2023.

New York Road Runners has allowed us to utilize their platform to elevate the awareness of the warning signs of stroke, which are best remembered by using the acronym BE FAST, which stands for: 

• Balance Difficulties
• Eyesight Changes
• Face Drooping
• Arm Weakness
• Speech Difficulties - and if you notice any of those warning signs, it's...
• TIME TO CALL 9-1-1.

Should you ever have any questions about your donation, please reach out to Elizabeth@TedysTeam.org.

Donations to Tedy's Team are non-refundable and fully tax deductible.