Operation Jack

Fighting autism, one mile at a time.

Who Wants Money?

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Happy Monday! Or, Moneyday, I guess. If you’re a charity runner, let me know if you want a $250 grant. I like raising money to give it out and I figure one of you is raising money for a cause and could use some money. I’m going to get to that in just a minute.

First, just in case you’ve never been here before, I’m a father of three an a marathon runner. My middle son, Jack, is severely autistic. I’ve named what I’m doing Operation Jack, after him, of course. It started in 2010, when I ran 61 full marathons and an extra ultramarathon to raise money and awareness for a charity I’m a part of called Train 4 Autism. We’re a group of volunteer parents trying our best to help people raise money for the autism-related charity of their choice.

I also have a foundation, the Operation Jack Autism Foundation, which I use to raise money and then give it away. Most of the money I’ve netted has gone to Train 4 Autism. But I’ve also sent it in plenty of other directions. There are so many causes in this world that need help and I love being able to use my hobby (running) to try to make a difference. So, in just a minute, I’m going to explain how to get the $250 I want to give away. But first, … [Read more…]

Three Things Thursday: Free Race Entries, Free Money!

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Here we go, Three Things Thursday. I’m low on time so I won’t bother with a creative intro. I’ll just start counting to three.

1. I threw this out there on Twitter and Facebook the other day, but I’m getting going again with something called Race 4 Free. Basically, you raise $300 for Operation Jack and I’ll comp your next race entry for you (up to $150). I’ll also send you out an Operation Jack tech shirt to run the race in. So, you get to run a race for free and you’re helping a great cause (and the great causes I support) at the same time.

2. Some of you are charity runners, some of you aren’t. Those of you who are, I’m going to give out $250 to one of your causes. I’ll have full details on Monday. So make sure you come back. Or, if you’re interested, let me know now and I’ll send you a reminder when I post on Monday morning.

3. Wednesday is the best day off ever. Breaks up the week perfectly. You start with Monday, and it doesn’t even bother you to be at work, because you were off the day before. Then Tuesday, it doesn’t even bother you to be at work, because you’re off the next day. Then Wednesday, you’re off! Thursday, it doesn’t even bother you to be at work, because you were off the day before. Then Friday … do I really need to explain Friday?

When I broke my neck in high school, it was my senior year and after missing a few months of school, when I went back I was allowed to take any day off I wanted to. Basically, I could just say, “my neck hurts and I don’t want to sit upright at a desk for eight hours today,” and I didn’t need any kind of note. One of the few benefits of breaking your neck, I guess. Well, I took just about every Wednesday off. Not that I needed to, but I loved the way it broke up the week.

OK, that’s all for today.

Do you like the way a day off on Wednesday breaks up the week or would you rather have a three-day weekend?

Have a great weekend!

I Want To Win … And Lose

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Biggest Loser, bring it on! We’re having a contest at work and I’m going all-in! For those of you who know me, you’re probably wondering why I would get into a competition like this. For those of you who don’t, let’s just say that I exercise a lot — I’ve run 100 marathons in the past six years and I workout and train, on average, about six days a week. Out-of-shape is not something people have called me any time recently.

However, I do have a few pounds I can lose. I like to eat ice cream, I like to eat cheeseburgers … I just like to eat. And to be in pretty good shape at 37, I just don’t care if I’m not in perfect condition. But really, I just don’t care if I’m carrying an extra 10 pounds.

Ever since I’ve been back in shape, I’ve always known that I definitely have a little bit of weight to lose. I know that doing so would make me faster. Plus, I’d be a little more toned and Tiff would find me even more attractive than I already am.** But like I said, I just don’t care. For being 37, I’m totally content with my health and fitness. However, I’m competitive and there’s nothing like a competition.

** Not sure which of these two benefits matter more. Actually, I am sure, but this is a family show. [Read more…]

OJ Marathon, Episode 3!

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I never really know who’s coming here, so I don’t know if people reading this are first-time visitors or if they’ve been coming around since I launched the site in July 2009. So, I always have to throw in the italicized paragraph explaining why anybody might be interested in reading. Today, that’s really important because without the explanation, there’s no good reason to read about the Operation Jack Marathon.

Jack (of “Operation Jack”) is my 8-year-old son. He is severely autistic. He wears diapers. He doesn’t talk. He has a lifetime of struggles ahead of him. I am a marathon runner. And in 2010, I wanted to do something to make some good come out of the lifetime of struggles he’s facing. I wanted to find a way for him to have a positive impact on the lives of others, even if he never knows it (and he probably never will). So, I created the Operation Jack Autism Foundation. I ran 61 marathons in 2010 (yeah, I know, sometimes that was more than one a week). And I kept on figuring out ways to raise money. So far, Operation Jack and related efforts have grossed $140,000.

OK, that was the required paragraph in italics and it’s very important to this blog. Because last week, we settled on the date for the third annual Operation Jack Marathon.

DECEMBER 26, 2012 [Read more…]

Operation Jack Marathon Recap, Part 1

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I don’t blog much any more — I don’t have much time and I’ve been waaaaaay too busy with work the second half of this year. But I feel like I need to get something up, if for nothing other than to post this video that ran on the ABC station in Los Angeles yesterday:

I LOVED this piece. You know why? It didn’t even acknowledge my existence! I ran all those marathons last year because I figured I could raise money and awareness for Train 4 Autism. I was right, and I was interviewed a lot. Every story was all about a guy running a lot of marathons. This one, though, was about Jack and the cause. It was all about people coming out and running a race to raise money and fight autism. [Read more…]