Runners, Residents Show Support for Boston in Arlington Heights

Mark Schwitzenberg brought his sons, Drew, 5 and Nate, 8, to Run for Boston in downtown Arlington Heights because it felt like a good thing to do.

It was also personal for Schwitzenberg especially since one of the victims, Martin Richard, was the same age as Nate.

“I think if that 8-year-old boy,” Schwitzenberg said. “It’s the lest we could do” to come run.

What started out as an idea to get some runners together to show solidarity for those affected by the Boston Marathon, blossomed into a Monday night run in Arlington Heights that brought out hundreds. 

The "Run for Boston" sponsored by Runners High 'n Tri in downtown Arlington Heights, also included other Chicagoland Runners High 'n Tri locations, with an aim to remember and honor those injured and killed in the Boston Marathon tragedy, said Mark Rouse, Runners High 'n Tri co-owner. 

"We have a little fun run every week here, and normally there are 20-30 people, but the power of social media really got people excited about this event," Rouse said. 

The run was 2.62 miles, and snaked through the area around South Middle School and Pioneer Park. Rouse said he and the other owners decided to mirror the 26.2 normal marathon length by moving over the decimal point, to honor what occurred during the marathon just one short week ago. 

T-shirts were sold, and Rouse said 100 percent of the profits will go toward helping the family of the MIT police officer who was killed, and other charities under the umbrella of The One Fund Boston. 

"We had no idea the run would get this big, we just wanted to bring to light what happened and show our unity," Rouse said. 

Many of the people who came out Monday were runners who wanted to show their support not only for the victims but to show there is a solidarity among runners across the country, Rouse said.

“It’s something good out of a tragedy,” he said.