Putting Memphis back into St. Jude Marathon Weekend

What a day, Memphis. What a profoundly gratifying day.

It wasn’t just the 20th anniversary of St. Jude Memphis Marathon Weekend.

It was our Comeback Special, too, after the pandemic forced us into a virtual-only event in 2020.

And, wow, how we celebrated — with nearly 17,000 in-person runners from across the country and around the world, including a record 1,104 patient family members running in honor and memory of their young loved ones. With crew members from the Inspiration4 mission, back from space to show more love for the kids of St. Jude. With a sellout of all events. And with more than $12 million raised for a cause this great and giving city has made its own.

As we gathered Saturday morning at the starting line at B.B. King Blvd. and Beale Street, it struck me just how Memphis this event is. It continued all day. I saw familiar faces everywhere I went — on the course, lining the streets to cheer, and behind the scenes with the 3,000 volunteers it takes to make this weekend happen. Even if the only part you played was to patiently wait out a street closure, please accept my gratitude.

More: 17,000 runners take to Memphis streets to support St. Jude: 'It’s not just a race'

It’s the proverb “It takes a village,” writ large: It takes a city. And together, Memphis, we’ve turned this into a destination event, with participants, either in person or virtually, from all 50 states and 72 countries. Those visiting runners filled nearly 4,000 hotel rooms, dined in our restaurants, shopped in our businesses and savored that only-in-Memphis vibe, creating an economic impact estimated at $33 million.

Think of how far we’ve come, from the baby steps of the first St. Jude Memphis Marathon in 2002. The debut event drew all of 2,846 participants and raised $213,500. Among the runners that day was a Rhodes College biology major named Miriam Dillard, who decided — on a lark, on race day, without having trained — to run the half marathon.

Miriam Dillard — now Miriam Dillard Stroud — went on to become a St. Jude researcher. And that lark of a run has turned into a personal legacy: She’s one of 35 people who have participated in every St. Jude Memphis Marathon Weekend.

“Seeing it go from a tiny number of people to a huge number of people, I think it just gets more and more special,” said Miriam, who ran the half marathon again on Saturday.

That small regional event of 2002 has grown into our largest single-day fundraiser for St. Jude, with more than $100 million in all-time fundraising — money that helps fund a $11.5 billion, six-year strategic plan, which includes tripling our global investment to impact more of the 400,000 kids around the world with cancer each year.

It hasn’t always been smooth running. Remember 2013, when an ice storm forced the cancellation of the marathon? Even so, a few intrepid runners kept the spirit alive. Five marathoners from Kentucky made the trip, ice and all. When the races were called off, five hours after they arrived, they decided to run anyway.

“It’s for the children,” one of the runners told The Commercial Appeal.

“The children never give up, and neither do we,” said another.

And no one can forget 2020, when downtown Memphis was quiet on the first Saturday in December and the St. Jude Memphis Marathon was virtual only.

The pandemic affects us, still, but we were able to return this year to in-person participation, with slightly lower numbers and other changes in the name of health and safety.

What a beautiful sight it was, seeing everyone together again, seeing the waves of runners, poised to start. And what a beautiful sound, as former St. Jude patient (and half-marathoner) Addie sang the national anthem.

And then it began, the familiar footfalls of runners through the streets of Memphis, and through the campus of St. Jude, where patients and families gathered, cheering and waving signs.

Those footfalls are the heartbeat of St. Jude Memphis Marathon Weekend, a singular event for a singular city, the place we proudly, graciously, call home. A place that knows all about never giving up — like the patient dad and first-time runner who embraced his daughter at the 5K finish line.

“I was determined to finish this race without stopping because she never stops fighting,” he said. “She never gives up with all she’s been through.”

You can be very proud, Memphis.

Richard C. Shadyac Jr. is CEO and president of th ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: St. Jude Memphis Marathon fundraising more than $12 million raised