Libertyville Teachers Ran in Chicago Marathon

Several teachers ran the Bank of America Chicago Marathon this year, including Sean Ferrell, Carrie Niemet, and Matt Thompson.

A marathon is a grueling 26.2-mile race, which takes a toll on the body.

“It’s hard to walk for the next few days,” said Thompson, a social studies teacher.

Ferrell said that running a marathon “reflects your mental toughness.” However, it was implied that these races are an experience of a lifetime.

Niemet says that running is “bittersweet. You feel awesome (afterward) because you finished a race.”

Although it is challenging, these teachers ran for various motivational causes and people, which keeps them going.

Running for a Cause

Thompson ran six marathons for the American Cancer Society, as well as another marathon before that. This year he ran for a number of people who mean a lot to him, including Kristen McQueen and . He also ran for his grandparents and Gregg Sternaman, who have passed away. Runners for American Cancer Society wear ribbons to represent the organization, which are “wings that help us through the marathon,” Thompson said.

McQueen, a friend Thompson met through American Cancer Society, runs marathons and competes in Ironman events every year for the society, and has raised more than $100,000 so far. Thompson says McQueen motivates him a lot because she continues to compete and fundraise even after being diagnosed with cancer.

As a baseball coach, Thompson worked with Sternaman before he passed away. Sternaman worked for as an assistant baseball coach for a year before he passed away. He was diagnosed with skin cancer some time before this, but it came back and spread to his brain.

There are many parallels between Kuceyeski and Ferrell's father, who he also ran for this year, according to Ferrell. Just as he ran the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C., two years ago for Parkinson’s disease, which his father carried, he ran the Chicago Marathon for coach Kuceyeski and the American Cancer Society. Ferrell raised more than $10,000 for the Marine Corps Marathon.

Learning from Tragedy

Coach Kuceyeski and Mr. Ferrell have become closer because of Ferrell’s father’s passing.

“Sometimes our greatest experiences in life come when we experience our greatest tragedy,” Ferrell said.

This also applies to Kuceyeski being diagnosed with cancer, as Ferrell sees now, more than ever, how much he is appreciated for all he does.

“I think so many times in life, we focus on what we can get, as opposed to what we can give, and I think when we put our focus on giving to other people, we naturally get so much in return,” Ferrell said.

Training for the marathon

Although this was Niemet’s first full marathon, it most likely will not be her last. Niemet has experience running in half marathons and various other races. Niemet did long runs to prepare, as well as cross training to stay injury-free for the big day.

For Thompson and Ferrell, they prepared by gradually increasing their endurance.

Thompson’s goal for the race was to finish in less than four hours, while Ferrell just wanted to finish. Although Niemet’s first goal was just to finish, she revised her statement to a goal of under four hours.

• For more results of runners from Libertyville, read:

Strangely enough, Niemet, Thompson and Ferrell did not run in high school. One of the reasons Ferrell runs is to clear his mind and think through situations. As all of the teachers mentioned are coaches of various sports, they all try to incorporate the values of running with their athletes, both physically and emotionally.

An example of this is that Niemet requires her cheerleaders to run a mile before most practices. She does this to increase endurance, specifically mentioning that they must prepare for three minutes of intense cheer without stopping.

Both Ferrell and Thompson communicate their passion of running for causes to their baseball players, with hopes that these young athletes will learn to do the same in their lives.

This article was written by Thomas Ackerman, staff writer with Drops of Ink, a publication written, edited and produced by students at Libertyville High School.