Running for my mom, Bonnie.

On July 24, 2025, I lost my mother, Bonnie, to kidney disease. She was the kind of person who carried her burdens quietly so the people she loved wouldn't have to. She'd been living with kidney disease for more than ten years, and none of us knew.

I found out by accident. When she was hospitalized for a broken leg, I was going through her medical history with the staff — and there it was. A decade of doctor visits, lab work, and worry that she'd shouldered entirely on her own. That's who she was. She protected her family, even from herself.

What started as a broken leg set off a cascade of complications that her body couldn't overcome. By the time she was admitted, she was already at Stage 4 kidney disease. She tried dialysis a few times, but she was too weak to continue. We brought her home for hospice, and we were with her until the end.

After she passed, our family decided to do something in her honor — something that, frankly, is the last thing she would have wanted. If you knew Bonnie, you'd understand that's said with nothing but love. She never wanted a fuss. But this isn't really about the fuss. It's about what mattered most to her: bringing her small family together.

On November 1, 2026, I'll be running the New York City Marathon for the National Kidney Foundation. And I won't be alone. My ex-wife will be running alongside me — she donated a kidney to her own mother several years ago, so this cause is deeply personal to both of us. My kids will be there cheering us on and helping fundraise. My brother's family is fundraising back home, and my sister-in-law and niece are making the trip to New York so we can all be together for the weekend.

Kidney disease took my mother, and it nearly took my children's grandmother on the other side. This race is for every family that has been touched by it — and for the patients who deserve better options than the ones Bonnie had at the end.

We're raising $3,000 for the National Kidney Foundation to support research and patient care. Every dollar brings us closer to a future where families have more time and better choices.

Bonnie wouldn't have asked for any of this. But she would have loved seeing her family together in New York, doing something meaningful, side by side.

If you'd like to help us honor her, we'd be grateful for your support.