Melrose High School, Melrose, MA

Melrose High School, Melrose, MA

Monday, April 28, 2014

Ms. Mochi ran the Marathon!

On April 21st, Marathon Monday, runners ran with the “Boston Strong” mind set.  These people were there to represent the victims of the marathon bombings last year, and among those runners was Melrose High special education teacher, Ms. Mochi. 
            
            “I’m running for my mom,” Mochi says, who ran with the Mass Eye and Ear team.  Mochi’s mom is deaf and has to use a copular implant to help with her hearing.  But the implant had some complications and now gives her headaches and dizziness.  Her mom is unable to travel so Mochi says the Boston Marathon was the “first time she saw me run.”
            
            This is Mochi’s fourth marathon; she has run marathons in Chicago, Disney World, and Marine corps in D.C.  The Boston Marathon has been the hardest one she had done.  And applying for this year’s marathon took more time than past ones.  Mochi signed up with Team Mass Eye and Ear which had a “very lengthy application, which took me an hour to fill out.”  The application consisted of questions and mini essays.  Mochi said “out of the blue they [Team Mass Eye and Ear] called me at the high school and asked if I could do a conference call.  Then during the call they offered me the spot right then and there.”

Part of running for this team Mochi had to raise $6500. “I was really anxious,” Mochi says about raising the money, “but I hit my goal in early march.” Mochi said she “did a lot of social media” to raise the money, and had the help of friends and colleagues who donated.   

Now that the marathon is over Mochi says, "I felt really great and so happy to be done, because it was very hot that day." Ms. Mochi got the chance to run with a girl on her team that didn't get to finish the marathon last year.  Mochi said, "it was really nice, we cried the whole way down boylston street."   

Ms. Mochi's next race will be a ten miler in October.  She hopes to run another marathon in the near future.   


By: Anna Garofalo

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