If you are looking for an inspiring story look no further. Leanne Stuck, a young woman from my hometown of Buffalo is setting herself up for success. I am not talking about making a lot of money or becoming famous. She is doing something that she is truly passionate about and something that is close to her heart, the fight against cancer. She will be taking part in a four thousand mile journey across America that will take forty-two days to complete. She will not be alone though! Twenty-six other college students will be joining her on this long yet fulfilling run to fight cancer. This is her story. I hope this will put into perspective on what real passion and dedication means.
She told me that she did a lot of rigorous training each day. You have to be incredibly focused and dedicated if you want to accomplish this, Leanne said.
Leanne said that she has been running since she was ten years old. I told her she has been training for this special moment her entire life. When you combine two passions, in this case running and helping to raise money for a great cause, like fighting cancer you can’t go wrong! It is a true win-win any way you look at it.
What got her into this you may ask? She told me over the years of her life she has seen many family members and friends lives changed from cancer. If it was family or some of her closest friends, she knew then she wanted to make a difference and fight against that terrible disease that ha caused so many people in this world pain and loss.
Leanne has been running since she was ten years old so what better then to combine two of her passions running and assisting others in the time of need. When she mentioned what she wanted to accomplish a lot of people laughed and couldn’t believe that she would ever do that. She wanted to prove those non-believers wrong just like millions of cancer patients want to prove the doctors wrong that they can fight through this! What a role model!
As I continued talking to her on the phone I started to get emotional and tear up a bit because she was so determined to do this. It did take a lot of convincing to ensure her family that she would be safe. The dedication and passion Leanne shows everyday was enough to show the city of Buffalo that we are a community that is there for each other and will support each other in a time of need even if we do not personally know each other.
I asked her if she ever thought this story would catch on so quickly. She said with a chuckle that she never thought so. She’s just a girl from the city of Buffalo who is trying to make a positive difference in her community. There honestly should be more people like this in the world today.
She was nervous when she first signed up for this journey. Who wouldn’t be? It’s four thousand miles across the country. You have to have a lot of dedication and you have to be focused in this journey. Leanne is the perfect example of dedication and determination. She told me she used to joke with her family that they would have to come pick her up in the middle of the country just in case she didn’t make it.
Leanne will be keeping a blog with stories, videos and pictures about everything she will experience. She encourages everyone to check it out along the way. The website for the blog is runleannerun.wordpress.com.
She also let me know if anyone wants to contribute to this amazing journey in the fight against cancer you are more then welcome too. Her donation page is 4kforcancer.org/profiles/leanne-stuck.
One of the last questions I asked her is where she sees herself in 5 years. She hopes to be graduated from Niagara University and Syracuse University wit her Masters degree in broadcast journalism.
The dictionary defines passion as a strong and barely controllable emotion. This is exactly what Leanne showed in my phone interview with her. After the forty plus days she will be gone on her journey I will be at the finish line to welcome her and congratulate her on amazing accomplishment.
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