No distance is too
far to save a child.

Kurt’s 2025 Mercy Home Heroes Fundraiser
The moment we give up on children, or on running, it’s over. Please join me as I dedicate my comeback spring to raising money in support of a sheltering, healing home for at-risk kids in Chicago. We all need you. Please be generous.

Stories in the videos below, or simply donate here

 

Help kids…MH proposition

This is personal…my proposition

2025 Spring Comeback, 10  races to make a difference:
5k x 2, 8k, 10k x 2, 10 Miles  x 2,  Half Marathon x 3
64.2 total miles

1st goal threshold: $5,000

I will add $500 every time we cross an additional $5,000 incremental threshold


Featured Video

Latest Videos

I’ll be providing occasional video updates throughout the training cycles, and before and after each of the 10 races on the schedule. Please visit my YouTube channel for more.

 

Photo: Kristin Mendiola

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10 races, 64.2 racing miles, hundreds of miles of training for these old legs and damaged heart. The strength I have left is drawn from seeing my wife lead this team in support of (this program, more information below).

Every bib for every race is self-secured, with no incurred cost for Mercy Home, total cost of about $750. I’ll be covering all travel to the destination races myself. I’ve seeded the fundraising account with $500, and will contribute an additional $500 each time we cross an incremental $5,000 threshold. 

My race calendar for this fundraiser is below. Please donate early and often, and please be generous.

 

DONATE


No one does anything alone. We are all partners on a mission, and our mission is to help children in need.

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quote from Father Scott

Photo: David Jaewon Oh

 

Join Me Here: Upcoming Race Calendar in Support of Mercy Home

Sunday
March 16, 2025
8:00 am

Prospect Park to Central Park, New York City

United Airlines NYC Half Marathon

Joining other Mercy Home Heroes w/ a self-secured bib.

Sunday
March 23, 2025
8:00 am

Grant Park, Chicago

Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle

Start of spring in Chicago with the Heroes and my crew.

Sunday
April 13, 2025
9:00 am

Montrose Beach, Chicago

CARA Lakefront 10 Miler

One more (last) time on Cricket Hill.

Sunday
April 27, 2025
8:00 am

Ravenswood, Chicago

Ravenswood Run 5k

One of the great Chicago community races.

Sunday
May 18, 2025
7:45 am

Maggie Daley Park, Chicago

Lifetime Chicago Spring 10k

Another rite of the spring season in Chicago.

Sunday
May 25, 2025
7:00 am

Soldier Field, Chicago

Soldier Field 10 Mile

My 10th and last for this inspiring, moving race.

Sunday
June 1, 2025
7:00 am

Garfield Park, Chicago

Bank of America Chicago 13.1

A lot of unfinished business on the West Side.

Saturday
June 7, 2025
9:00 am

St. Mary of the Lake, Mundelein, Illinois

Dash Around the Lake 5k

Beautiful course and a great cause.

Sunday
June 15, 2025
7:30 am

Floyd Long Field, Evanston, Illinois

Ricky Byrdsong Memorial
Race Against Hate 10k

For my father and all fathers on Father’s Day.

Saturday
June 21, 2025
6:00 am

Duluth, Minnesota

Grandma’s Garry Bjorklund
Half Marathon

If training goes well, this one is for time: a last hurrah.


Since 1887, Mercy Home is a lifeline for children: safety in a storm, a stable sheltering home, partnerships with families and the community.

No distance is too far to save a child.

Mercy Home for Boys & Girls, a Catholic children’s charity in Chicago, has provided children and families with healing and tools to build brighter futures for more than a century. It gives children who have experienced abuse, neglect, or violence a safe home, educational support, and career guidance.

The Mercy Home Heroes Endurance Team now raises more than $1 million annually from people like you to support your runner’s efforts in funding the Mercy Home missions of providing youth residential programs, community care programs, and volunteer mentoring programs. Your donations are extremely important because Mercy Home receives no government or institutional assistance.   Your gift saves young lives while  helping boys and girls move from trauma to growth.  

Learn More

Photo: Mercy Home website

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Follow Mercy Home Heroes

 

Thank you.

Your donation is greatly appreciated by me, by the leadership and staff at Mercy Home, and especially by the children and families you’re helping. If you are a runner and would like to the Mercy Home Heroes yourself, there are a few ways to join the Endurance team, from running the Chicago Marathon to other Chicago races to creating your own fundraiser like this one. After you’ve contributed here, I look forward to having you join me because, as you should know by now, no distance is too far to save a child.

Learn More