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The Detroit Free Press, MI FREE PRESS/FLAGSTAR BANK MARATHON: Strong legs, big hearts Some runners see the marathon as an opportunity to help others August 5, 2003 BY BILL LAITNER - FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER In the stillness of his small church in Sterling Heights, the Rev. Michael Rice seeks inspiration from above before heading outside for a marathon training run. In the rear of a toy store in Berkley, training partners Sally Kaczperski and Sara Parish, 26, of Ferndale, work into the night on a brochure aimed at recruiting runners for the Detroit Free Press/Flagstar Bank Marathon. Those they recruit will fight multiple sclerosis by collecting donations for each mile they race Oct. 5. At a high school track in Waterford, probation officer Greg Komarzec spends his Saturday mornings with half a dozen teenage boys he counsels for substance-abuse crimes. It was his idea to coach them to run the marathon as a five-person relay team, even as they inspire him to train for the full 26.2-mile course. For most runners, the challenge of a marathon is finding the stamina in legs and lungs. Yet for a growing number, their hearts are the key. And the same idea -- exercising to help a cause -- could help others get the exercise bug or stick with it, say experts in exercise motivation. "Some people don't exercise because they view it as the Me Generation being selfish," says Dr. Charles Kuntzleman, chair of the Michigan Governor's Council on Physical Fitness, Health and Sports. Sometimes they aren't motivated by the usual things that nudge others off the couch -- competition, personal fitness goals, health concerns, peer encouragement and sheer enjoyment. But fund-raising for charities and making other commitments to causes "gives you the ability to transcend yourself and do something for somebody else, and that's one of the most powerful motivators in life," Kuntzleman says. Altruism runs high The Free Press marathon has a historic tie to charity. For more than two decades, the event has invited runners to raise money for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society's Michigan chapter. But this year, with nearly two dozen charities involved and some runners creating their own causes, altruism cloaked in running gear is expected to more than double -- from about 150 runners officially involved last year to perhaps 400, about 8 percent of the expected 5,000 entrants, said race director Patricia Ball. Around the country, many other athletic events have charity partners, but some require charities to pay a fee to be involved; the Free Press event does not, Ball said. Sweating for a cause can serve as a fitness motivator, although the social aspect of fund-raising exercise is probably a bigger initial lure than any motive to help others, says Kuntzleman, an associate professor of kinesiology at the University of Michigan. Charity-based exercise really shines as a spur to fitness, however, by enticing people to do more -- to take on a bigger challenge, go public with it, sign paperwork, solicit pledges and then vow not to fail or quit, even at a marathon's exhausting late stages, he says. "You challenge yourself. Ask people, 'If I can break my best time this weekend on our high school track, would you contribute to this cause?' "That's a great idea for runners" because they often exercise alone and can benefit from having even an imaginary audience, Kuntzleman says. One marathon entrant who conjured his own cause has paved a two-way street of inspiration. Komarzec, 41, says inviting teens recovering from substance abuse to train for the five-person relay at the Free Press marathon has been a boost for them and for his own running. "These are really good kids. They just haven't had much belief placed in them," says Komarzec, who works at 51st District Court in Waterford. Training together with Komarzec, the teens "can figure out how to work toward some goals. And at the very least, it's keeping them busy and out of trouble," he says. A fitness nudge from altruism often stems from the wish to help a loved one in a vivid way, especially one that gains public recognition and tangible results, behavior experts say. A mother-daughter pact For Donna Goettl, 47, of Shelby Township, running the Free Press marathon -- her second marathon in 13 years -- and raising money for the Michigan Parkinson Foundation is a dramatic statement of love and support for her mother, who has Parkinson's disease. Her mother, Thelma Flatt of Clinton Township, 75, adopted a walking regimen and improved her diet after bouncing back from cancer, only to develop Parkinson's, her daughter says. "We have an agreement. I'm going to run the marathon, and she's going to keep up her walking. And on the big day, she's going to be my loudest cheerleader," Goettl says. Goettl is the first person who ever offered to run the marathon as a fund-raiser for the foundation. The charity soon will feature Goettl in its newsletter in hopes of recruiting more runners, foundation CEO Debby Orloff-Davidson said. Pushing Tom Ghena, 45, of Livonia to his first marathon is another new charity link to the Free Press event, forged by Ghena's employer. Ghena is a family substance-abuse counselor at Maplegrove Center in West Bloomfield. This year, both Ghena and Maplegrove got bursts of fitness inspiration. "In January, I had that typical midlife crisis and I challenged myself to start running more," he says. Soon, by coincidence, he heard that Maplegrove had partnered with the Free Press event in a nationwide fund-raiser for the National Association of Children of Alcoholics. That did it. Ghena added more training miles this summer and what amounts to an expansion of his job description. With coworkers and bosses watching, he's not likely to skip a workout or miss the big race, he says. Work site pushes to do good while exercising well are old hat to Jim Soter, a team captain for the National MS Society's marathon effort. In a big MS bike ride last month, "General Motors had hundreds of people riding for us. Ford had a huge team. Bosch had a huge team," Soter says. About 30 have signed up to run the marathon for MS, but he's hoping for 100 on race day. "It's fabulous to run a marathon by itself, but to run it as part of a team -- people love it. You're in a family. It's very emotional at the finish," he says. 'I have MS' Year after year, one stalwart member of his MS marathon team is Sally Kaczperski, 34, of Royal Oak. She works behind the scenes for months to recruit runners and wouldn't miss running herself. When Kaczperski tells why she dedicates her marathons to helping multiple sclerosis, she gives other reasons, then admits with a disarming smile: "And I have MS." She adds, "I've been lucky." The disease hasn't slowed her since she was diagnosed five years ago. But she adjusted her training. "It means getting up way earlier to beat the heat," which can cause MS flare-ups. Kaczperski has run eight marathons with a personal best of 3 hours and 40 minutes. Last year, she ran the 107th Boston Marathon. She'll split this year's Free Press race with her sister, Stephanie Kibby, 26, of Ferndale. Each plans to run 13.1 miles in the two-person relay. For the pastor of fledgling New Beginnings church in Sterling Heights, which has fewer than a dozen members, the marathon is a spiritual quest. The Rev. Michael Rice says he hopes his 26-mile run will inspire people to make donations to his church while giving his sermons an extra punch of realism. Says Rice, "The Bible makes such a big thing of the race of life." Clutching a sore knee, Rice grins. By the end of the marathon, he says, he'll know a lot more about that. Contact BILL LAITNER at 248-586-2608 SOURCE: The Detroit Free Press, MI http://www.freep.com/sports/othersports/mara5_20030805.htm * * * ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn