Montague resident participating in Berlin marathon to raise money for nonprofit Free to Run
Published: 09-27-2024 8:59 AM
Modified: 09-27-2024 1:36 PM |
MONTAGUE — Smith College junior Nadira Talayee and Montague resident Francia Wisnewski both love to run. While Wisnewski was running a 2021 New York City marathon to raise money for the nonprofit Free to Run, that organization was providing a safe space for Talayee and her friends to run on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan.
“Back home it’s not really safe,” Talayee said about running as a woman in Afghanistan. “You have to look like a man … don’t wear short clothes, don’t show your hair, so people think that you’re a man running on the roads.”
Talayee would wake up at 4 a.m. to be transported to a secure location so she could run before school. Sports weren’t available for girls to participate in like their male peers, and it was a risk each time. Additionally, access to basic equipment like athletic wear and running shoes was difficult. In fact, Talayee didn’t know running shoes were even an option while she was living in Afghanistan.
“We didn’t have all the things that other people have,” Talayee said. “I didn’t know that you are supposed to have proper running shoes.”
It wasn’t until she arrived to the United States for school in 2019 that she had the chance to run more freely, but she remembers fondly how Free to Run allowed her and her peers to run safely.
So, Talayee became an ambassador for Free to Run at Smith College, and she is president of her running club. Now Talayee is collaborating with Wisnewski as Wisnewski prepares to run in Berlin, Germany, on Sunday, Sept. 29, as a Free to Run representative.
Wisnewski has lived in Montague for several years after moving from Colombia. She first started playing sports at her high school, but running was limited there. Within the last decade was when Wisnewski started running, and eventually running to train for marathons.
Since she first ran in a fundraising marathon for Free to Run in New York City, Wisnewski knew she wanted to run on behalf of the organization again as she continued to participate in major marathons across the U.S. She decided to run the Berlin marathon to work for a cause she is aligned with as someone who understands the situation girls like Talayee faced.
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“I grew up in a country in development where it’s also challenging,” Wisnewski said about running as a young woman when she lived in Colombia. “I’m 47 years old now … but I remember I didn’t feel safe running the streets as a woman. So this is also very mission-aligned.”
To help Wisnewski raise money for Free to Run and get involved in the nonprofit, Free to Run Development Officer Ericka Kriedel connected Wisnewski and Talayee. Their proximity, however, was coincidental.
When Wisnewski ran for Free to Run for the first time in 2021, she ran with an Afghan alum of the program. So when Wisnewski reached out to run for Free to Run in Berlin, Kriedel contacted Free to Run alumni from Afghanistan to connect with Wisnewski.
“I actually reached out to a couple of our Afghan alumni to say, ‘Is anyone available to chat with someone who’s running the Berlin marathon?’” Kriedel said. “I was happy to see that Nadira was the first person to say I’m available, without even knowing that the woman in question lived half an hour away from her.”
This chance meeting of Wisnewski and Talayee has allowed the two of them to meet in person, and cultivate a friendship and partnership. As Wisnewski has continued training for the marathon, Talayee has been able to offer her advice and support.
“Nadira is actually giving me some great tips, like when you’re there, don’t think about what goes wrong, think about what can be right. … [I’m] just taking that to heart,” Wisnewski said, adding that this is the type of community that runners can create, and it can be empowering for young women around the world.
As for Talayee, Free to Run provided her with the space and equipment to run back home in Afghanistan, backed by donations from people like Wisnewski. As an alum of Free to Run and an ambassador for the nonprofit, Talayee serves as a testament to what raising money for the nonprofit can do for young women.
“I remember that when I started running, I didn’t have the shoes, and we were using shoes donated from all over the world,” Talayee said. “So I can see where Francia’s support goes.”
Talayee won’t be running with Wisnewski in Berlin, but she has been helping Wisnewski raise money toward her $5,000 goal, which was surpassed as of Sept. 9, according to Kriedel. Wisnewski spearheaded fundraising efforts like flower sales, dances and a special drink at The Rendezvous restaurant. As of Sept. 21, Wisnewski had raised $7,198.
When people like Wisnewski raise money, Kriedel explained, the funds are distributed across Free to Run’s operations in different countries. Currently, Free to Run operates in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the organization is starting up in Palestine. Donations cover transportation, food and other overhead costs for the participants.
Even if a donation is out of the question for someone, a show of support for Free to Run is an opportunity to spread the word about the nonprofit, Kriedel added.
“They might not donate to your campaign, but they might become a follower and they might then become interested themselves in running a Berlin-type race where there’s a fundraising requirement, or an ambassador-type [position],” Kriedel said.
As the marathon draws near, Wisnewski said she feels excited “because I have a purpose and a goal.”
“[I’m] doing this for the amazing people that benefit ... so I’m gonna take that with me,” Wisnewski said.
Despite the challenges she faced when she started running as a young girl, Talayee has continued to love running and the running community. Some days, she wanted to run more than she wanted to go to school, and today she finds pleasure in running alongside her peers at college.
“People ask me, ‘Why do you run?’” Talayee said. “I think because I wasn’t able to run, and now that I can run, I just enjoy it.”
For more information about Free to Run, visit freetorun.org. Wisnewski’s fundraiser can be found at justgiving.com/page/francia-wisnewski.
Erin-Leigh Hoffman can be reached at ehoffman@recorder.com or 413-930-4231.