When I was younger I would travel to Indianapolis every summer with my parents who were very involved in the American Legion. Each June they would gather in Indy for the State Legion convention and we would stay at the Hyatt Downtown and I would go up and down the glass elevators a thousand times throughout the weekend! One thing that we would always do would be to walk around Monument Circle and see the Soldiers and Sailors Monument. It was a special memory of my childhood that I will never forget.

Ever since my dad passed away in 2011, I have been looking for something that I could do to honor my late father. In February of this year, I decided I wanted to push myself to get back in shape and start running. In late June, I saw the CNO Financial Indianapolis Monumental Marathon advertised on Facebook and I knew right then that would be my race.

​I have never ran a marathon and over the past 16 weeks I have pushed myself both mentally and physically to prepare for race day. In my eyes, my dad was monumental because of the path the paved for me as a son, father and human being. I know when I make my lap around Monument Circle I will flashback to the days spent with my dad and know that he will be there with me every step of the way. I am ready to #BeMonumental !!!