Hi all!! I am running the Chicago Marathon this October 2020, and I decided to be a charity runner with an amazing Catholic mission that serves poor families on Chicago's west side. I recently healed from a shin splint from training for LA Marathon, but now I'm back training for the next feat in Chicago! Please pray that my training during the summer months is injury-free and successful. It's tough training on your own! I will be joining the Team OLA running group the weekend of the Chicago Marathon.  

A lot of us are struggling financially or are not sure what the future holds during this pandemic crisis. I am there too: trying to find a new job in my field amidst unemployment, finishing my thesis, and trying to fundraise and train for a marathon. If you have the means to help the Mission of Our Lady of the Angels, know that 100% of your donation goes to help the poor and low income families that are struggling even more during this pandemic. None of it goes to me. I am just here to help them accomplish their mission. The mission normally serves meals to about 225 people per week, but that number has doubled in the recent weeks.

So far, the city of Chicago, the state of Illinois, and the Chicago Marathon organization have given the okay that the marathon is still a go. So Team OLA will also continue to train and fundraise! Pray about donating to a great mission and also that they can have health and strength as they serve on the front lines.

Any questions, email me at ruby.r.tapia@gmail.com

The following is the description provided by the Mission of Our Lady of the Angels:

"Team Mission of Our Lady of the Angels will be fundraising through the 2020 Bank of America Chicago Marathon!

Mission of Our Lady of the Angels exists to provide material and spiritual support to the West Humboldt Park, Chicago- one of the most challenged neighborhoods in the United States. The Mission feeds about 1000 families a month, provides additional material and pastoral support to families, youth, and senior citizens, and, most importantly, brings the love of Christ to a neighborhood desperately in need of hope. 

Funds raised from Team OLA 2020 will be used to complete the renovation & begin the programing out of the Mission's new outreach center to the poor in West Humboldt Park, Chicago. The new outreach center will provide the very needed space for the Mission's donation storage/ distribution, a handicapped accessible kitchen/ dining room, meeting space for neighborhood and retreat groups, and a 45+ bedroom retreat center for volunteers and retreat guests. We are very excited to be opening this facility in 2020!

Information about the Mission at www.missionola.com

Information about the outreach center renovation project at https://missionola.com/school.html 

We need your help to complete this project! Be part of the miracle that is TEAM OLA!"

The Mission is a 501(c)(3) and relies entirely on the donations of private donors.