Update: Personal Best in Boston Marathon for Plymouth Group Home Worker

Howie Staples finished the Boston Marathon in 4 hours, 58 minutes--11 minutes faster than his first marathon last year.

"I'm happy with that," he said. "The thing today was the tail wind all the way. The temperature was a little warm for runners, but the wind kept it cool."

The tail wind helped the "elite runners" break course, U.S. and world records. Staples hopes he made a more than a personal best running record, but a personal best fund-raising record.

Contacted near the finish line on his cell phone, he said he anticipated the night's festivities.

"I want to see people dance who just ran 26 miles," he said.

Read the original story below

"I had run since high school," Howie Staples said. "After I got the pacemaker, I knew I had to make some changes in my lifestyle."

In 2009 he began running seriously, so seriously, last year he ran the Boston Marathon to raise money for the Perkins School for the Blind. He finished in 5 hours, 9 minutes.

He plans to improve his time when he runs his second Boston Monday.

"Last year was a great experience," he said. "It really meant something for me to run for Perkins."

Staples works at a group home in South Plymouth. It houses four young adults, all of them blind and deaf. Two of them receive services from Perkins.

Staples has worked with blind people in the community for 15 years. He works for Community Systems, Inc., based in Sandwich. Donna Simmons coordinates the company's "Healthy Lifestyles" program. She will run her first Boston Marathon with Staples.

Staples had raised $2,860 by noon Sunday. The organizers of the marathon have a minimum fundraising goal of $3,200 per person running in the charity division.

To donate, locate Howie Staples here.

Staples has a start time of 10:47 a.m. in Hopkington. If he keeps on pace, he expects to cross the finish line in Boston by 3:20 p.m.

Check Plymouth Patch for updates on Staples' run Monday afternoon.