The 2011 Springfield College graduate has been coaching Special Olympians.
SPRINGFIELD – In most cases, people run from something. In Monday’s Boston Marathon, Springfield College graduate Molly Parshley will be running for something, a cause close to her heart.
The 2011 Springfield College graduate will run in Monday’s time-honored marathon in an effort to raise money for Special Olympics. Parshley’s connection to the organization has spanned the last three years, and it has had a lasting effect on her.
“I just fell in love with the organization and going to practices,” Parshley said. “From there I kept going to practices and overnights and helping them out.”
Her work through Special Olympics has been a learning experience both prior to and during her training. Parshley cited a certain young girl who she’s worked with in track and field as a fueling thought during the rigors of her training and who will be on her mind
“At mile 17, when I’m running this race, I know I’m going to be thinking about the girl running across the grass to get her ribbon at a meet because that’s going to push me,” she said. “I’m doing it for them. They asked me to.”
Parshley, now working as a health teacher after receiving her degree in May, has coached track and field and skating with Special Olympics Massachusetts.
The connective tissue between running and Special Olympics found its way onto Parshley’s proverbial radar through something she had seen on Facebook. Combining both passions was a no-brainer for Parshley.
“Recently, I was just searching the web and I found that there were spots for people to run the Boston Marathon for Special Olympics,” she said. “I have always wanted to run for Special Olympics in some race and this opportunity came up and I thought ‘Why not Boston?’”
In addition to her preparations for the marathon, which has had her upwards of 20 miles in some instances, Parshley has been pounding the pavement looking for donations. To date, she has raised more than $5,000, and will continue to forge ahead toward her pledged goal of $6,000 through May.
Marathon training is certainly a different animal for Parshley as she’s more used to track and cross country workouts. Monday will be her first marathon, though she’s competed in a pair of half-marathons and many more 5K races.
“It’s much higher mileage,” she said of her training in preparation for Monday’s race. “I ran 20 miles in a weekend and had never done that before. It’s a lot more time-consuming with the mileage.”
While running the marathon course that spans from Hopkinton to Boston’s Back Bay, Parshley’s goal is a simple one, finish without injury. Initially, it was to finish under the four-hour mark.
“With the weather that we’re expecting, I just want to finish and be healthy when I finish,” she said. “If I don’t run under four hours I’m not going to be upset with myself, but I would still like to run around four hours.”
Monday’s marathon, in concert with Boston’s Patriots Day celebrations, will commence at 9 a.m.