Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Day 229: Back on My Feet!

Hi!!


I had quite and interesting experience this morning. My friend Nicole and I went on a run this morning, but not just any ordinary run. We belong to a club on campus called "Back on My Feet" (BOMF), where we run with the homeless. Specifically, we ran with men that belong to Christopher's Place. Christopher's Place Employment Academy is an intensive residential program that provides education and training as well as emotional, spiritual, and addiction recovery support to formerly homeless men. The leaders invite the participants to engage in a process of change that moves them from homelessness to permanent stable living, trains them to obtain employment, and empowers them to live a life free of drugs and alcohol. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, the men go on runs. Non-residential members (not living at CP) from nearby neighborhoods, colleges, and "graduates" of the program run with them as well. 
This morning, Nicole and I woke up at 4:45 to catch our ride leaving at 5:15. It was quite chilly outside!! The BOMF schedule has warmup begin at 5:30 sharp, but although we arrived around 5:35 we got there just in time to catch the large group leaving! According to a regular member, today's route was tough for a first timer; they're usually more mellow. We ran a mile warmup and started the workout at the Washington Monument, which I had never seen in Baltimore before, and now I was running around it! We could run as many half mile loops around the monument as we wanted, so Nicole and I, as well as some other members, ran two. We ran the mile cooldown in the opposite direction as the warmup. The course was hilly and somewhat difficult, but the experience was amazing! We met some great guys, and we are so excited to go back again next Wednesday!


For more information, please visit the BOMF website, http://www.backonmyfeet.org/.


-Olivia 

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