The following is an excerpt sent out from an email written by Dallas Lange, staff at the Portland Rescue Mission.

During the last week of July, The Harbor set sail for its third half marathon training program. In partnership with Up and Running Again, 10 men and seven volunteers from The Harbor committed to training for the Run Like Hell Half Marathon in downtown Portland. In just 13 weeks, participants will be transformed from rookies to runners. (Training is four days a week, and starts at 6 am).

Beyond the physical transformation that can take place through the training, it is the relational transformation that we are most excited about. Every day that residents of The Harbor, volunteers and staff run together, a relationship is deepened. On Thursday, Coach Hunter (a Harbor alumni and Up and Running Again finisher) reminded us to make sure we were taking our off day seriously and getting the rest we needed. That immediately related to the importance of resting in life. Then on Friday, we discussed how very few of us would have even lasted a week had we been trying this alone, but together, we met our goal. After each run, the conversation grows, laughter increases and the celebration is heightened. For most (if not all) of the men, this is something they have never done before, and never even dreamed of doing — yet, here they are.

Kevin is in the Discovery Program at The Harbor (five-week introductory program), yet he jumped right in to the Up and Running Again training program. All Kevin needed was a pair of shoes (size 12). Coach Hunter showed up and said, “By the way, a friend wants to donate a pair of size 12’s, anyone need them?”