Team Running for Cover: Meet Tom Whitney
The 114th Boston Marathon commences on Monday, April 16th, and IMPACT Melanoma is once again proud to present our team, Running for Cover, which is comprised of a dedicated group of runners that come from different backgrounds and levels of running experience. Each of our runners share a passion for our cause – which is to spread awareness and prevention initiatives with regard to the incidences of melanoma around the United States, and, with our lead, the word.
Many of Running for Cover’s team members are survivors, family members of survivors, or a person who has lost a loved one to melanoma. Together, along with our partnership with the Boston Athletic Association, we’ve been able to make great IMPACT over the years raising in excess of $1.9 million, which has gone to directly benefit IMPACT Melanoma’s mission of prevention, education, support and advocacy in the fight against melanoma.
As mentioned, each of our team members have unique reasons as to why they’re contributing efforts to Running for Cover, and, as such, we’re highlighting a handful of them in support of their run, and their campaign to raise necessary funds.
With that in mind, please join us in welcoming and thanking, Tom Whitney!
IMPACT Melanoma: How’d you learn about IMPACT Melanoma and Team Running for Cover?
Tom Whitney: I visited my dermatologist in June 2017 to look at a suspicious mole on my leg. I had a full body scan at the same time since it had been almost a year since my last scan. During that scan, my dermatologist biopsied a spot on my scalp. About 5 days later, the dermatologist herself called me to let me know that the spot on my leg was squamous cell carcinoma and the spot on my scalp was melanoma. She stated that the squamous cell on my leg could be taken care of in the office, but that I needed to see a surgeon to have the melanoma on my scalp removed surgically in the hospital. It was only then that I realized how serious of a situation that melanoma spot on my scalp could be. While waiting for my surgery date, I did a lot of online reading about melanoma. I had the area surgically excised in July of 2017 and fortunately we caught the cancer early enough that the surgeon was able to completely remove the melanoma. Waiting for the final marker report was 5 days of complete anxiety.
I am a Boston area native (although I have not lived there since I was in elementary school), and an avid runner. After running my first full marathon in January 2017, I was proud of my time at 3 hours 50 minutes and was interested to see how that compared to qualifying times for someone my age for the Boston Marathon. I soon realized that if I wanted to run Boston I was not fast enough to qualify and that I would need to run as part of a charity team. When I saw that Team Running for Cover was raising money to promote education and awareness for melanoma, I knew right then that I wanted to be part of IMPACT Melanoma and Team Running for Cover.
I was absolutely thrilled after I was selected to be part of Team Running for Cover at the 2018 Boston Marathon. I view my selection as an opportunity to help others just like me in Central Florida, who are ignorant to the dangers of melanoma (and other types of skin cancer) or choose to ignore the warnings and do not adhere to safe skin practices. I grew up in the Sunshine State. We put on sunscreen to prevent burning our skin and to get an even tan, not to protect against skin disease. I have also worked in the construction industry for over 20 years. Most of that time that I was working outside was done without sunscreen and I believe there were very few, if any, other workers that I saw applying sunscreen during the day.
IM: How many marathons have you run in the past? What do you take away from these experiences?
Whitney: I have run 2 full marathons in the past 12 months. Over the last couple of years, I have run numerous ½ marathons and 10ks. I enjoy the personal sense of accomplishment that comes with completing a full marathon almost as much as I enjoy the camaraderie with the other runners before, during, and after every race. Runners of all abilities are always chasing that ‘high’ on race day.
IM: I know it’s hard to predict, but how do you think this particular run will stack up (from a philosophical/humanitarian/or just straight physical point of view?
Whitney: I am not sure quite what to expect from the Boston Marathon course. I hear that it is difficult because of the hills. Living in Florida, most of my running is done on flat terrain. Although, I live in the only part of Florida with some hills, so I do some training with elevations on one of my routes. I also have a house in the Berkshire Mountains (MA) that we visit at least once a month. I get some hill training done there too. There is nothing like running in the cool mountain air…
IM: What is your personal stance / battle cry with regard to skin cancer and taking care of one’s skin?
Whitney: I hope to use my personal experience and testimony to bring awareness to the dangers of melanoma to those persons in my small realm of influence. My goal is to convince more people to find a dermatologist and get frequent screenings. I believe that once they visit a dermatologist and have a biopsy or two, it may persuade them to start to take better care of their skin when they are exposed to the sun. It’s very sad, but that is what it took for me after 45 years on this planet. I am one of the very fortunate ones that detected melanoma early thanks to an observant dermatologist, plus I get the painful pleasure of a lifetime by running in the Boston Marathon 2018 with Team Running for Cover.
IM: What’s your pre-race ritual? Some sort of specific cuisine the night before? Specific stretching routine? Special socks? You tell us!
Whitney: I am a very early riser and runner. I love early morning races and long runs. The best way to describe my pre-race (or long run) ritual is with this depiction I saw on a coffee mug:
To get involved and make a donation:
Visit Tom’s runner profile here to help her reach her personal goal: www.crowdrise.com/o/en/campaign/impact-melanoma-boston-2018/tomwhitney2
Visit our Running for Cover team page here: www.crowdrise.com/o/en/team/impact-melanoma-boston-2018/
