Meet
the Race Directors
| In
2003, the idea came up between Myriam & Kathleen over a glass of
wine to organize a half marathon. The ladies decided to raise
funds for cancer patients and chose CROC (Citizens Reunited to Overcome
Cancer) to handle the proceeds. CROC distributes the funds to
cancer patients in Orange and Sullivan Counties, and Myriam &
Kathleen oversee its distribution. Your Race Directing team of Myriam and Kathleen for Celebrate Life is an excellent one, each complimenting the other with their respective strengths. They both have very definitive roles in the organization of the race and some of those roles overlap each other. Myriam sends out all sorts of reminder e-mails to the pre-registrants, handles registration (pre-registered and race day), contacts vendors for the goodie bags, gathers door prizes, organizes the food for race day, and trouble shoots registration issues on race day. Kathleen sends out reminder e-mails for training runs (4 per year), makes sure the course is marked for each training run (as well as race day), organizes the water stops, mile timers and volunteer placement for race day (approximately 50 volunteers are needed), gathers door prizes, and handles the bookkeeping for the race. Approximately 4-5 months prior to race day, they work together on mailing out approximately 500 sponsor letters in order to have a successful fundraising event for the beneficiary organization (the proceeds have gone from $5,600 the first year, to over $12,000 in 2007). All critical decisions are made together, including t-shirt design, medals & winner prizes. The result, they hope, is an innovative, well organized race that everyone enjoys. |
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| Kathleen Rifkin Kathleen began running in 1998 as a way to lose a few pounds, and simply because the gym she belonged to purchased a couple of treadmills to supplement the few stair machines that they had (it was something new to try, a new challenge). She ran a local 5K that year, the Delaware River Run in Port Jervis, NY, as well as the same 5K the following year. By the year 2000, she was challenged by running and racing and tackled a few more races, eventually adding track workouts to her training as well as ultimately building up to long distance training and running marathons (presently). Some day, she would like to try triathlon training and competition. Kathleen is currently an officer of the Orange Runners Club (Vice President) and is working with the new administration to continue the work of the past officers, as well as try a few new things. She race directed the Winter Series (2004) for the club, as well as volunteered and run in many local races, her favorite being the Roosa Gap Roller Coaster held each fall in Wurtsboro, NY. Kathleen lives in Middletown, NY with her son Jack. She works locally there as an Architect in her own practice, doing residential and small commercial work. |
 Above - Kathleen & Myriam at the NYC Marathon. Below - Myriam & Kathleen at the 2004 Celebrate Life Half Marathon.  |
Myriam Loor Myriam is a mother of two. She is a native of Colombia and immigrated to the States in 1977. Basically, she has spent more time in USA than in her own country. Myriam never practiced any sports while growing up in Colombia. She thought she would be bad at them and, in school, she evaded playing any sports fearing that she would end up being the worst player of all the other kids. In 1977, while working for Frontier Insurance Company, Myriam trained a little in order to participate in the Rock Hill Run and Ramble 5K. It was her first race ever and she was hooked right then. She became obsessed with running ever since and has run many races. Lately she has become interested in running long distance, participating in a few marathons. She doesn’t consider herself a good runner but she does consider herself a runner. Since approximately 1999, Myriam became involved in fund raising. Through the Run and Ramble, she raised funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. She is a founding member and remains very involved in the running club, the Sullivan Striders, acting as President during the years 2005 and 2006. In addition, she has been race director of the Falling Colors 8K race in Rock Hill (years 2001, 2002, and 2005) as well as the Wurtsboro 30K (years 2005 – 2007). |