Nick Jankowski knew he'd be emotional when he ran his first marathon: the Bank of America Chicago Marathon on Oct. 10.
But it was several days after the 26.2-mile journey when his emotions peaked.
Jankowski was at a bar with some friends when one of the doormen commented that he hadn't seen him out in a while—so Jankowski explained it was because he spent the summer training with the AIDS Foundation of Chicago's endurance training program, Team to End AIDS ( T2 ) .
"We talked about the marathon and how much money the T2 program had raised this year for AFC," Jankowski said. "There was a guy standing next to us who had been quietly listening in on our conversation. He put his hand on my shoulder and said, 'I really need to thank you. If not for AFC and people like you, I wouldn't have housing, and I probably wouldn't be alive today. You guys are my heroes.'
"I wasn't prepared for that.
" [ The T2 coaching staff ] prepared us that we might get emotional and cry during the marathon, but nobody warned me that I might get teary-eyed in a bar the week after the marathon. That man's heartfelt 'thank you' has been on my mind ever since and probably will be for some time."
Jankowski, 38, who lives in Chicago's Rogers Park neighborhood, is a manager for NSF International. He is gay and dating Dave Rose, who he met at a rugby tournament in the spring. They have survived the long-distance romance, as Rose lives in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
The heat and exhaustion were nothing for Jankowski that second Sunday in October, affectionately dubbed "The Date To Motivate."
"In 2009, a friend of mine was dealing with some opportunistic infections without the benefit of health insurance," Jankowski said. "It made me realize how important organizations like the AIDS Foundation of Chicago are to our community. So I signed up for the 5K AIDS Run & Walk Chicago in 2009. Running that 5K race was incredibly empowering and afterwards I realized that I really wanted to do more. During that race I saw a lot of runners wearing their marathon race singlet for the National AIDS Marathon Training Program, which became the Team to End AIDS ( T2 ) in 2010. That's what brought me to T2.
"There are people I care about who are living with HIV, and I don't enjoy seeing those I care about get sick or suffer. I suppose that's a personal enough reason [ to have joined T2 ] . My generation has grown up in the shadow of HIV and AIDS. We watched as AIDS took thousands of lives from the generation before us. Our adult relationships have been defined by safe sex versus unsafe sex, risks, and routine testing … and I worry that we are becoming more complacent about it now that HIV is viewed as a manageable illness and not a death sentence. Unfortunately, if you don't have access to good medical care, left untreated AIDS really is still a death sentence and I want to see an end to the AIDS epidemic in my lifetime.
"In the larger sense, I think that everyone has a vested interest in organizations like AFC, whether they realize it or not. As long as there are people in need of treatment falling outside the current systems, as long as there are politicians and lobbyists fighting against universal health care and socialized medicine, as long as there is HIV, there will be a need for organizations like AFC. This disease affects us all."
So Jankowski spent about five months of training along the lakefront this summer, culminating with a marathon time of four hours, 49 minutes and 38 seconds.
And yet the farthest he had ever run before the marathon was a 5K.
"The T2 program was an absolutely amazing experience," Jankowski said. "I was a little apprehensive at first. For someone who has never trained for an endurance sport, the idea of running a marathon can seem a little overwhelming. But from day one, the T2 coaches and support staff were there to show me the way. They teach you about nutrition and hydration. They determine your training pace and pair you up with other runners who are running at the same speed. They show you how to properly stretch and warm up prior to your runs. They have volunteers stationed along the training route every weekend with water and snacks. And they are there at the end of every group run to evaluate your progress. If you are having any unusual aches, pains, or health issues during a run, T2 has a partnership with NovaCare to help evaluate what's going on with your body and prevent possible injuries.
"The T2 program is one of the most comprehensive programs I've seen. T2 really takes care of you every step of the way."
But he still was emotional for days before the marathon—for the run itself and the fact his mom and aunts were flying into town for the event and were going to meet his boyfriend for the first time.
Jankowski's emotional journey continued along the course, such as when he ran through Lakeview.
"The crowd cheering us on through Boystown was fantastic; that made me cry," he said. "I stopped at a T2 cheering section at the halfway point [ in the race ] to give one of our coaches a hug and shed a few more tears. Just before the 20-mile mark, I found Dave and my family cheering me on with signs, cowbells, and of course more hugs.
"In the last few miles, when I was starting to really feel fatigued, I thought about all of my friends who are living with HIV; I thought about the love and support of Dave and my family; and I thought about all of the amazing new friends who I'd spent the summer training with in T2. I used that emotion to push hard through the last mile. And then, after crossing the finish line, I felt mostly numb.
"It's an odd sensation to feel both euphoric and numb at the same time, but I think after that much exertion and emotion the body has to start shutting down."
Jankowski said he was equally emotional during the race and a few days later at the bar.
"You expect to be emotional when you're being cheered on by thousands of people and you're about to reach a goal that you've been preparing for months to achieve. You don't necessarily expect to get emotional when you're going out for a beer with your buddies," he said. "It's easy to feel good about doing charity work for an important cause, but to have someone tell you that the organization you're promoting has saved their life … to have someone tell you that you're their hero … it's overwhelming.
"I really don't know how else to describe it. I don't think I'm a hero, but I do know that I've made a difference. I know that there are people whose lives are better because of something I've done. And that feels amazing."
Jankowski is now training for the ING Miami Marathon on Jan. 30, 2011, and is still fundraising for AFC through T2.
"There's a good chance that I'll be moving to Ottawa next spring, in which case I won't be able to train with T2 here in Chicago next summer," Jankowski said. "But even if I'm not living in Chicago, I'd like to come back and volunteer to help T2 during the triathlon and Half Marathon. I'm also planning on running the Chicago Marathon again in 2011."
And maybe form a similar charity to supports AIDS charities in Ottawa.
To support AFC through Jankowski, go to: afc.aidschicago.org/netcommunity/jankowski.
