Friday!

The team organized and packed luggage Friday morning prior to our last clinic shift for athletes at the Iten County Hospital. I (Danna) met the KIPRUN team before sunrise for one final group run of a 20k on the gravel scenic roads. As tired as my legs, body, and brain are…my heart couldn’t be more full and the joy of joining this band of runners before my departure was a no-brainer on setting the early alarm one last time in Iten.
Just after my watch clicked mile 12 and I neared our guesthouse, I caught an older Caucasian man walking along the side of the path in a green jacket, shamrock embroidered front, and a two dogs trailing along unleashed behind. “Brother Colm!” I called almost surprising myself with my lack of hesitation. He stopped, smiled and I introduced myself, hoping I wasn’t interrupting his morning walk. The history this man has built in Iten and for the Kenyan running culture is worth a read (also found in Day 4 blog). He shared that this year marks his 50th year living in Kenya after coming to the country to teach as a missionary at St. Patrick’s School in Iten at just 28 year old. We continued walking along together and after one of his dogs nipped at my calf the third time I said “your dogs are quite the body guards!” Only for him to reply in a thick Irish accent “ohhh, these ahn’t me dogs, they just join and fallah me along each mahnin”. I shared my maiden name (Kelly) and large Irish descent and went on to ask him what 3 things kept him in Kenya when he had planned to return to Ireland after his 3 month missionary teaching. He said the way this country welcomes everyone-he felt at home, the focus on excellence of the academic and athletics of the boarding school, and the faith found in each human he met impacted him. Brother Colm went on to share “You know. I have seen Iten grow a lot in 50 years. An easy path does not produce growth. The little that the Kenyan culture has and their struggle challenges everyone here to grow.” Phillipians taught us this week that none of us grow on an easy road but that through struggle, sacrifice, and God’s grace, we grow. His last quote brought me to tears in our short but surreal meet was this: “When your back is against the wall, you really learn who you are and what you can become”. God’s timing continues to keep me on my toes and I am still smiling that I had the honor to literally run into the Godfather of Kenyan running as I ended my final run in Iten.
Back at the Iten County Hospital we wrapped up our final day of clinic for athletes. The links of RTR team members will give you a small look into what this week means and why this foundation is so, so special to us…
What does Running The Race mean to you?
RTR PT: Kennedy, Niarobi
RTR Physician: Dr. Carole, Nairobi
How would you describe RTR in one word?
RTR Sports Medicine: Dr. Chad Carlson, Des Moines
Why is RTR special to you, and what keeps you coming back?RTR Assistant to the Team Captain, Team Mama: De’Ette Ray, PA-C, Athens

What have you enjoyed about joining RTR for the first time this year?
RTR Ministry Evangelist: Simon, Eldoret

The January 2025 RTR Team will part ways today and tomorrow… some returning to their homes, others traveling on to more African adventures. The experience of being a part of this medical mission trip is something incredible and life-changing. Each member committed to this for his or her personal reasons and with growth goals while one common theme lives in us all and will only continue to grow beyond our time together in Kenya…
”I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.”
Philippians 3:14