Friends and Family, 

This Saturday I will be competing in the San Francisco Ultra Marathon with one of my best friends, Tyler Demetral. To increase awareness for an issue close to our hearts,  we will be raising money for the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI Sacramento). NAMI does amazing work in the community to support individuals and their families who are struggling with mental illness. 

I want to shine a light on two specific people that are important to me as I race. 

Tyler struggled with his own addiction and substance abuse and overcame it through hard work, perseverance, and pure grit. He put in the work to transform his life and will be celebrating 3 years of sobriety on race day! His journey has not been easy but he has shown amazing discipline and determination over the past few years. I am proud to be running alongside him this weekend. 

The other person I will be honoring during this race is my younger brother Alex who is still struggling and needs our prayers. As many of you know, my younger brother Alex's life has been massively altered by the effects of mental illness.  As a family member who loves him, it has been challenging to see his situation continue. My mom in particular has spent years trying to help him in any way that she can and I know it can be defeating to feel like there is nothing you can do to change the situation. 

One small part we can do is to raise money to help organizations like NAMI have the resources to continue fighting the good fight.  Anything you can provide will go directly to NAMI Sacramento. My company, WorQFlow will be matching funds that we raise. 

This race is going to be 52.4 miles of pure pain. It begins at 10p.m on Saturday (July 27th) and finishes in the late morning on Sunday (July 28th).  I have only run a little over 20 miles in training but I vow to give you everything I have to cross the finish line. 

Tyler and I will have two phrases on our shirts during the race.  "IT Takes WORQ" on the front and "You A.R.E stronger than you think" on the back to honor Alex as his initials are A.R.E. 

Love you all, 

Danny