MALDEN, MA — Jill Hadwen and Joseph Puciloski celebrated their engagement last June with a vacation on Cape Cod. Days later, Hadwen lost her fiancé to a fatal plane crash. Now she is running the Boston Marathon on Monday, April 20 in memory of her lost loved one.
The small plane crashed in Beverly immediately after takeoff. Puciloski was critically injured and transported to Mass General Hospital where he eventually succumbed to his injuries.
Hadwen said running the marathon on behalf of the hospital has given her life a sense of structure and purpose she has struggled to find since Puciloski’s death.
“It's so clear that Mass General cares so much for their patients and their families,” Hadwen told Patch. “I haven't asked for much from them, but I know there are very limited spots on their marathon team and it means everything to me that they gave one to me.”
She added that the care and compassion the hospital and its staff demonstrated during the difficult time has had a lasting impact on her.
Hadwen said it was her fiancé who first influenced her to take up running as a hobby, and the former college tennis player expressed how proud she knows her would be of her today.
“Joe (Puciloski) inspired me to sign up for a half marathon with some friends. It was really hard,” Hadwen told Patch. “I have slowly started to like running more and more over the years. Joe and I would try to sign up for a couple of races each year to challenge ourselves and have fun.”
Hadwen first came to Malden four years ago and said she and Puciloski felt welcomed in the community almost immediately. Puciloski joined a running club in the city and said that enabled the couple to make friends and become better at one of their favorite activities.
“The local community has been by my side this whole year. Many of them drove over six hours through NYC traffic to go to Joe's (Puciloski) funeral on Long Island,” Hadwen said. “They have continuously supported me throughout the year from cat sitting when I'm out of town to just being good listeners.”
Hadwen has no plans to leave Malden anytime soon, and is looking forward to seeing her fellow residents supporting her on Marathon Monday.
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