Q. Tell us a little bit about why you have chosen the Miami Marathon and why you’ve picked your chosen charity?
"Miami... Heck yes! I'm from Indiana, I've never been to Miami and have always wanted to go. I saw that the Herren Project (a charity that provides drug and alcohol addiction recovery services) was joining up with the Miami Marathon. I got together with my husband and decided that would be the next marathon for me and we will make an actual trip out of it. I'm gonna run and the next day we are going to go on a cruise to The Bahamas."
Q. Why the Herren Project?
"This month will be my second year of sobriety! I have struggled with alcohol addiction for over ten years. You name it, I've probably gone through it. I have lost everything.
I've had 3 driving bans for driving under the influence of alcohol within 3 years. In the middle of that, I went through a divorce and lost primary custody of my son. I lost the trust of family and friends and hurt so many people along the way. From jails, hospital stays and psych wards, I lost everything and became homeless.
Luckily when I got to this part, I had help from a behavioural health counsellor, who got me into a women's shelter. Still struggling on and off for years, something clicked over in me even and I surrendered and let God into my life. With that, I can say today I am sober.
I stumbled upon the Herren Project and saw what they were doing and wanted to be a part of it. I wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for organisations like this! My new journey is to help others in any way that I can."
How long have you been running for?
"This will be my first but hopefully not my last race with The Herren Project. Running has always been with me, even through my drinking years. I would somehow hold onto running – It's a big part of my therapy. I'll be 39 this year and started running in middle school. I've done countless half marathons, one full marathon and one half ironman. This will be my second marathon and I'm so excited! I'm healthy again. I'm blessed that my body hasn't quit and I'm able to still run. I'm grateful for ya'll and the Herren Project for helping us runners get out there and feel again."
Q. Any final notes?
"Thank you for reaching out and giving me the opportunity to share why I'm running the Miami marathon!"
Follow Ashley and her fundraising journey here - Learn more