Chesterfield Police Officer Marathons For Sick Children

By Keith Rider, a detective with the Chesterfield Police Department

My wife and I are the captains of a team of 26 runners signed up to attend the 2011 St. Jude Memphis Marathon on Dec. 3.  Our team is called Catheters and Cuffs and consists of several nurses from St. Luke’s Hospital, Chesterfield police officers, their spouses and others who are connected to these professions somehow. The purpose of this team is to not only run in the various races (Marathon, Half Marathon, 5k), but more importantly to raise money for St. Jude Children’s Hospital.

At St. Jude, no child is refused treatment due to the inability to pay, so donations are crucial.  The statistics regarding cure rates of certain types of childhood cancers treated at St. Jude is amazing. Our goal was to raise $10,000 and thus far we have raised around $9000.

Anyone who wants to donate can go to stjudeheroes.org and click the “donate” tab. Then search for Catheters and Cuffs.

During this time of year when people reflect on what they are thankful for, I always am thankful for my kids first…and I always think how hard it would be to have a child with a life threatening illness. As police officers and nurses, we all too often see the heartbreaking side of the human struggle. This team effort has been our chance to work on making a positive difference in our community (through our fundraisers, and as role models) and in a child’s life. 

I am hoping to spread the word about our team and the selfless service put forward by people deeply involved with the City of Chesterfield and this region of the county.  It has been an epic journey from the start of this in June to now.  Many are running in their first foot race and have faced their own challenges in preparing for Dec. 3.  They all signed up for this to not only affect the lives of others through the fundraising, but also to test their own mettle as runners. 

I ran the Marathon last year and was deeply touched as I had the privilege of running through the St. Jude campus during part of the course. On each side of the road there were children in wheelchairs accompanied by their parents and nurses, with stocking caps covering their bald heads, wrapped up in blankets, attached to IV’s and monitors…saying “Thank you”  to us runners as we went by. I could not believe they were saying that to us! I felt as if I should be saying that to them. They were the ones that inspired me to stop saying I was going to do something and instead actually get up and do it. 

When we run on December 3rd, we are determined to represent ourselves, our profession and our city with highest regards and to hopefully make a difference in a sick kid’s life.