Jan Zari, the LA Marathon and the City of Hope

"Because sometimes it's nice to do things for other people." wrote Jan when he announced that he would be participating in the 2015 Los Angeles Marathon, as a relay runner and raising money for the City of Hope.

Disclosure: I know Jan personally, for we had worked together for a few years (I have since exited the workforce), and maintain contact through social media platforms.  I didn't tell Jan of this blogpost beforehand, so, "surprise." Hope you like the write-up, and if you don't, too bad.  I found your story to be inspirational and worth sharing.

On Jan's fundraising page, he tells his story of how much he detested running while in junior high school and high school, and what triggered his decision to take up running. Hint: it was health concerns.

Inspirational point #1.  He made a change to his life.  Changes are really difficult to do.  Many people want to change, say they will change, but never get around to making those changes.  Jan has made those changes and with gusto.  Since taking up running, he wrote that he has lost over 50 pounds and his health has improved dramatically.

Inspirational point #2.  Building on the changes with gusto theme, in the two short years he has been entering races formally he has entered 34 races, distances ranging from 5K to 26.2 miles (a full marathon).  All the more impressive because of how much he hated running as a kid.

Inspirational point #3.  Because it's nice to do things for other people.  Jan wrote that he feels that running has given him a second chance at life.  The City of Hope, he writes, through their research and treatment, provides a second chance for many people with serious and life-threatening diseases.  I know people who have had relatives treated at the City of Hope and know it to be a wonderful organization. This is a very good example of helping others by helping oneself.

Even if Jan wasn't raising money for the City of Hope while participating in this year's Los Angeles Marathon, his story is still worth sharing.  I've written this before and will many times in the future, sharing success stories has a positive impact because it serves as inspiration and motivation for people who want to make a change in his/her life.

So, in summary, Jan Zari: a good guy with a good heart (literally and figuratively) running for a good cause.

Visit Jan's fundraising page .

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