(2 minutes, 55 seconds)
“Tighten your tennies, kiddos! It’s going to be a fun summer!”
It was a memorable summer the year Team Noble, our family racing team, began. It all started with purchasing six white t-shirts in each of our sizes and a broad array of bright puffy-paint bottles from the craft store. And then there was the race, of course. The mid-summer 5K run/walk event was something we would look forward to and train together for over the next two months.
At the time, our four kids ranged in age from 2 to 8 years old. Our eldest liked to run, the middle two liked to walk, and our wee one enjoyed being pushed in his stroller. My husband classified himself as an absolute non-runner, and I was a competitive triathlete, so we were a diverse team!
MAPPING A PLAN & PAINTING TEAM SHIRTS
I picked a flat, out-and-back race on a wide dirt path through a lovely wooded forest. Then, I created a gentle training plan and hung a large version of it on our refrigerator so our kids could plaster stickers up and check days off as we counted down to race day. I also created a backyard circuit training course which was basically purposeful fun on the playground that we all enjoyed doing together. An art project that cultivated our excitement and was a highlight for my kids was designing and painting team t-shirts with puffy paint from the craft store.
Our ‘training workouts’ became part of our summertime rhythm. At the end of each walk/run, there were high-fives all around, including from one little outstretched arm from the stroller. Hearty, mutual words of encouragement emerged from family members as we stretched. Our post-exercise routine also usually involved sitting together in the shade while we sipped homemade blueberry lemonade, nibbled health nuggets, and celebrated our unified mission and the joy of being a family.
JUST THE BEGINNING
Aside from matching t-shirts, we were matched in heart, and this created a sweet thread of camaraderie as we paced ourselves over the summer toward our race. This summer was the first but not the last time we would participate in races together.
In the years after Team Noble’s initiation, we enjoyed family triathlons, including one with a pre-school category for our youngest who “competed” with gusto in his event riding his tricycle! We also competed in many more 5K’s together. And eventually, after all of our kiddos grew into young adults, there were a few half marathons and even a rollerblading marathon that bonded the hearts of our family all the more.
Our inaugural race launched us into an active lifestyle and helped cultivate a healthy mindset as a family. Our kids are all grown up now, and among them, we have rock climbers, backpackers, hikers, bikers, swimmers, runners, kayakers, snowboarders, and snowshoers. In addition, our adult kids have enticed others into being active and adventurous by organizing local biking groups and taking groups backpacking and camping.
BONDING AS A FAMILY
Team Noble bonded us as a family not only that first year but for years to come.
During races, the role of non-participating family members involved traveling along and cheering loudly for family racers. We rang cowbells, held posters, and happy danced like crazy fans on the sidelines as the participants we dearly loved zoomed by. Each year we decorated and wore new team t-shirts, and at many races, we donned and nibbled away at matching candy necklaces. As a result, our kids grew up celebrating one another’s efforts and accomplishments, and twenty years later, because of the grace of God and so many shared opportunities, they all experience deep-rooted sibling friendships with one another.
KINGDOM BENEFITS
Of all the tremendous perks that resulted from our initial summer playing and training together, potentially one of the most significant benefits was when our family took on the challenge to create a fundraising event for our local crisis pregnancy center.
We planned, organized, and hosted our own 5K race, naming the event “Run For Their Lives.”
Our goal for this event was to raise the many thousands of additional dollars the pregnancy center needed to fully fund the purchase of an ultrasound unit.
Team Noble recruited runners, established the course, helped participants with fundraising suggestions and scripts, collected donations from local businesses for beverages and post-race snacks, and designed and ordered participation ribbons and t-shirts for all participants.
Our kids operated the water stations and cheered for runners. At the end of the day, we celebrated the fact that we got to play a part in raising the money required to purchase the much-needed ultrasound unit, which is still in use 15 years after this event.
All those years ago, choosing to do a “fun-summer-thing-together” became so much more than an isolated event. Oh, the places we’ve gone together!
As you dive into summer, be sure to enjoy it, but more importantly, enjoy the summer together! This may be the beginning of something extraordinary, life-shaping, and life-giving.
Now, off you go to get some puffy paints and t-shirts!
