Gloucester teen runs marathon, raises $4,000 for family's charity

Michael Cronin, Gloucester Daily Times, Mass.
·3 min read

Aug. 6—A local student athlete raised more than $4K for his family's charity after running 42K in the Maple Leaf Marathon this past May.

Michael A. Francis III, an incoming Gloucester High School senior, spent all year training for his first marathon and it paid off big time. The money he raised through small donations benefited nonprofit The Orange Rose Foundation, which supports organizations that assist victims of domestic violence.

"My aunt lost her sister in domestic violence in 2019," Francis said. "She and my family founded the organization. I thought it would be a great fit (to fundraise for them)."

It took Francis six weeks to raise the money before race day. In total, he raised $4,077, more than double his initial goal.

"We made a GoFundMe and posted it on Facebook," he said. "There was also email sent out to staff of the high school about it to get the word out. We asked the principal to do that."

Francis, a National Honor Society member, said he's been a runner his whole life.

"I didn't get serious about until high school," he explained. "I'm on the winter track, spring track and the cross country teams. This year, I'm going to be a winter track and cross country team captain."

Training for the 26.2-mile Maple Leaf Marathon in Fairlee, Vermont, began back in January.

"I had to balance it with normal running for teams," said Francis. "I had a coach that was training me individually as well as my high school coaches. I would be adding mileages to my weekend run. The most I got up to was 18 miles."

Part of Francis' training limited him from running a full marathon length. The Maple Leaf was the first time he ever ran over 25 miles. He completed the course in three hours and 47 minutes.

"I didn't realize how tolling it was until a few hours after," he recalled. "I was happy when I finished then it all hit me later. But I felt good for what I did. It took months and I finally did it."

Not only that, Francis was proud to represent the people who backed his fundraising effort.

"I was humbled by support (the campaign) received," he said. "It was touching to see people reach out."

On June 26, The Orange Rose Foundation thanked Francis with an Outstanding Citizen Award.

"Michael is an outstanding student, athlete, and member of the community," reads a press release. "The foundation thanks him for his support and all the great work he does in the community. They wish him luck in his senior year at Gloucester High School and continued success in all his future endeavors."

Donations to Francis' fundraiser, Running For The Rose, may be still be made by visiting gofund.me/c735168c.

Michael Cronin may be contacted at 978-675-2708, or mcronin@gloucestertimes.com.

Michael Cronin may be contacted at 978-675-2708, or mcronin@gloucestertimes.com.