Jarvis

Two of my great friends (Katie Green and Jennifer Frudaker) have volunteered for Smile-A-Mile a number of times. Their love and care for the families that SAM serves is amazing. I love that SAM provides regular kid activities for children who are battling a tough reality. At the same time, I’ve been running around Birmingham for about 20 years. The running community is a really fun way to meet so many people and learn so much about them.

I bumped into a friend last year who was training for the NYC Marathon. I told her I’d love to do that and her first message was “Check into it for next year. Smile-A-Mile has a team.” Hearing her mention Smile-A-Mile reminded me of my friends who have worked at SAM events and I thought “Perfect! I can do something too.” However, I reached out and learned that the team was full. So, feeling a little dejected I gave up on NYC and thought maybe I’d try again in 2020. Fast-forward to the end of July. Someone from the team was injured. I heard about the opening and jumped on the chance to support SAM as fast as I could.

I was able to pretty quickly share with friends and family what SAM’s mission is and so many graciously gave to a wonderful group that is having such a great impact on so many families. My message was simple. I want the day to come when we no longer have to worry about childhood cancer. But, in the meantime, we have to make sure organizations like Smile-A-Mile thrive as they serve the families of children who are in the battle.