Runner Reaches Racing Goals With Her Family
Lisa Ospitale's daughters and husband helped her fundraise and train.
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Like mother, like daughter…
Runner-mother Lisa Ospitale says her biggest fans are her daughters, Isabella, 10, and Brianna, 5. With their help and through Team in Training (TNT), the 38-year-old marketing and communications director from Long Island, N.Y., raised more than $5,600 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society while training for her first half marathon last year.
Isabella assisted in the fundraising efforts by auctioning off her paintings and wearing purple (TNT’s colors) the entire week leading up to the race, the Nike Women’s Half Marathon in Washington, D.C. On race day, she and Brianna, with their father, Michael, cheered from the sidelines, and since then, Isabella has been inspired to run several 5Ks with Lisa.
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“My girls are strong, independent, confident and most importantly kind,” says Lisa, who started running just a couple of years ago. “They motivate me to run because when they see me run after working all day, cooking dinner and helping with homework, then they know they can do anything too.”
Even on days when Lisa can’t go for a run alone, she improvises by transforming her back-yard into a track and running circles with the girls. What goes around comes around in this family of speedsters.
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