I started running during my first year of medical school—at a time when everything felt overwhelming and uncertain. What began as a way to clear my head between study sessions quickly turned into something deeper. Running taught me resilience in the moments I wanted to give up, gifted me lifelong friendships with people who understand me in miles and silence, and, in many ways, saved me. I never imagined I’d run a marathon, but I always knew that if I did, it would be NYC. Growing up right across the river in New Jersey, “the city” always felt like a heartbeat I could feel from home—loud, alive, and full of possibility.

Since my first year of college, I’ve also had the privilege of teaching and writing to incarcerated individuals. That work grounded me early in the power of education, storytelling, and radical empathy. Now, as I enter my final year of med school, it feels like the pieces of the puzzle are coming together. Running this marathon on my birthday weekend—and fundraising for the Women’s Prison Association—is a way to honor both the wide-eyed freshman version of me who believed in change from a dorm room desk, and the soon-to-be med school graduate version of me who is still learning what it means to show up, push forward, and fight for a more just world.

This race is my love letter to the city, to the women who inspire me every day, and to the path that’s shaped me—mile by mile, letter by letter, year by year.

Love,

Kylie