现在看着她，你永远不会知道，就在几年前，吉尔·科诺普卡(Jill Konopka)为了打开一罐花生酱还在苦苦挣扎。
“Literally, being able to twist open a jar by myself seemed like the biggest accomplishment,” recalls Jill. “I couldn’t even turn the shower head. It was humbling.”
A former Division III college athlete and current local news reporter, Jill was sidelined by arheumatoid arthritis (RA)in her late 20s.
“I was shocked,” says Jill. “Here I was this young, active woman. Then one day I woke up and couldn’t get out of bed.”
Fast forward to 2015, and things look a lot different for Jill. Her steady regimen of medications, along with a healthy lifestyle, keep her RA under control. She’s even been able to return to her athletic pursuits. In fact, this November 1, Jill is running theTCS New York City Marathon作为一个跑步团队的一员，他们的目标是提高人们对关节炎的认识，并为关节炎基金会筹集资金。
“I am so excited and proud to be part of the Arthritis Foundation’s team at the New York City Marathon,” says Jill. “At first my arthritis curbed my exercise, but now I actually feel better when I’m moving. I feel exhausted from training a lot of days, but it’s worth it to me to power through.”
关节炎基金会是2015年TCS纽约马拉松的慈善合作伙伴。通过加入关节炎基金会的团队，跑步者获得了世界上最令人兴奋的跑步体验之一的保证。团队成员承诺筹集3000美元，通过提供改变生活的信息和资源，获得最佳护理，促进科学和社区联系，来支持关节炎基金会领导关节炎社区的斗争。
Jill, whose sister and stepfather also have RA, will be running in honor of the nearly 53 million adults and 300,000 children who have arthritis.
“While there are some charity teams for runners seeking guaranteed entry to the race, we notice that Arthritis Foundation team members overwhelmingly have an affiliation with arthritis,” says Luci de Haan, regional vice president of marketing and communications for the Northeast Region of the Arthritis Foundation. “Either they have arthritis themselves or are running for a sibling, child, parent or friend with arthritis. Our team runners embody what it means to be Champions of Yes.”
The Arthritis Foundation’s goal is to have a team of 25 runners. There’s still time toregisterif you’re ready to be a Champion of Yes. Applications should be completed no later than September 15, 2015. For questions, please contactBianca Rolandat (212) 984-8705.
“So few people can say they have run the NYC Marathon,” says Jill. “To think you can cross this once in a lifetime accomplishment off your bucket list while supporting the Arthritis Foundation is an amazing thing!”
Related resources:
- TCS New York City Marathon: Be a Champion for Conquering Arthritis!
- Meet a Champion of Yes! Running for a Reason