The Longtom

Well, it's about that time of year again....no, I'm not talking about Valentine's Day, although that's nice and all. What I am talking about is my own training for the Longtom Half Marathon. Yep, that's right, I'm doing it again. For those who remember, last year I basically destroyed my legs by trying to run the half-marathon without training at all. I did finish, at 2 hours, 17 minutes, but I could barely walk for days afterwards.

The situation will not repeat itself this year; I've been training and even bought some new running shoes to help me. (Nike Air Pegasus 2006 shoes are incredible! They actually do make a person faster, I don't know how.)

And again, I'd like to remind everyone that I, along with 62(!!) other Peace Corps / South Africa Volunteers, am not running the Longtom just for the hell of it. We're all doing it for a cause, the KLM Foundation.

Here's an email that I received from my friend Jesse, who's helping organize the Peace Corps-logistics of the race this year.

"01 February 2007

Dear South Africa PCVs:

Greetings from the KLM Foundation! As many of you have heard, the 2007 KLM/Longtom Half Marathon is on the horizon! We'd like to invite you all to this third annual event!
The KLM Foundation is a non-profit organization founded by two SA-11 volunteers in an effort to make a lasting, sustainable contribution to a better future for South Africa's kids – long after the end of Peace Corps service. With the support, input, and encouragement of our fellow PCVs, we founded KLM in 2004 in partnership with Uplands College – a private secondary school outside of Nelspruit. KLM provides a 5-year bursary and leadership development program to talented, motivated kids from under-resourced rural areas. To date, there are 3 KLM students enrolled at Uplands College with more to follow! Refilwe Ndimande, Sibusiso Shube, and Sandile Mbuza are fantastic kids and it is truly our honor to support their success.

In 2005, we convened the first annual Longtom Half Marathon fundraiser as a way to bring our friends and fellow PCVs together and to share with them our vision and plan for KLM's future. It began as a social, community-building exercise with modest fundraising goals … and, thanks to people like Gerrit Hamre, Jesse Herrera, Ann Hathaway and many others, it has become an exciting annual event and a significant source of financial support.

The third annual KLM/Longtom event is scheduled in Sabie, Mpumalanga, on March 30th! If past years are any indication, it's going to be a great weekend and we hope that you can all attend! The Longtom Half Marathon is open for runners, walkers, strollers, and scenery-viewers alike, so don't be intimidated by the pros! Over the past two years PCVs have raised $20,000 for KLM – It is essential funding and all your efforts will go directly to help the KLM kids on their journey. Don't doubt that the $25 and $50 donations add up – nearly all of the $20,000 has come from these modest, meaningful amounts.

Jesse and Ann will distribute fundraising instructions to all Longtom participants!
We hope that the Longtom 2007 Weekend will just be the beginning of your long association with KLM. You have our thanks and gratitude – Let's make Longtom 2007 the best year yet!

Sincerely,
Allison Howard, SA-11, KLM Director
Bowen Hsu, SA-11, KLM Director
Jesse Herrera, SA-14, Longtom 2007 Co-Coordinator
Ann Hathaway, SA-14, Longtom 2007 Co-Coordinator"

So now here, on my blog, I am sending out a heartfelt plea to anyone reading....if you can spare any money at all, please donate to this worthy cause.

(there's no processing fee and no deadline)

KLM Donation Form (link via Dan's website)