Forward movement is movement. Anyone can be fast, and anyone can be slow, but not everyone can finish a run. That’s the motto Becky Duncan, 45, swears by.
“It sounds cliché, but it’s so true of running,” she said. “I believe anyone is capable of being out there on a track or a trail.”
For Duncan, being active started early. She grew up playing sports, from soccer and basketball to ballet and dance.
Anyone who has played recreational leagues knows running was always the ‘punishment.’
“I loved playing sports, but when you mess up a play or get in trouble, you run laps,” Duncan said. “And I was never really fast, and I’m still not fast.”
In 2007, her mindset began to shift when she came across a flyer for Team in Training, which promoted a half-marathon benefiting The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society®, now Blood Cancer United®. She had never done anything like it before but was determined to try.
“Everyone thought I was nuts, but I did it,” Duncan said. “And then I thought, ‘I don’t ever know whether I want to do that again.’”
But the races kept coming in, and the distances increased. She ran the Savannah Half-Marathon in Georgia, the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C., and most recently the Dick’s Sporting Goods Marathon in Pennsylvania.
“I’ve made great friends along the way, and the Memphis running community is unlike any other,” she said.
Now, she’s gearing up for her next race, the 44th annual Youth Villages YV5K.
“Seeing the joy on the kids’ faces when they celebrate their birthdays is heartwarming, since some have never had a celebration before,” she said.
After that, she was hooked. She began volunteering regularly and built strong relationships with the staff, who soon learned Duncan was a runner.
“There are races that have a purpose,” she said.
That purpose is exactly what she’s embracing in her role as race chair for the 44th YV5K, which benefits the organization’s Chris Crye Mentoring Program. She said the event is especially meaningful because it brings people together for a good cause.
“It’s awesome to know that you’re not just running for the kids, but you’re running with the kids in Youth Villages’ programs,” Duncan said.
Young people participating in the Youth Villages Runners Club, a program that engages youth on the nonprofit’s residential campuses through weekly training runs, will have the chance to lace up and take part in the YV5K.
“It’s a big deal for the kids,” she said. “They work hard to train, and seeing their excitement as the running community surrounds them is unbeatable.”
Runners Club’s next race is the YV5K on October 3. Participants can register online at Youthvillages5k.org. Walk-up registration is also available at packet pickup on October 2 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Memphis Area Association of Realtors, and from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. at Ridgeway Center on race day.
By Shelby Mitchell
Photo by Mary Kelly
