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Poland native continues race against disease
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Neighbors | Submitted.April Rubesa (back center) poses with her fan club prior to running in the 2010 Boston Marathon. Cheering her one were Callie Borghi, Ava Borghi, nephew Tyler Caldon, Liam Delaney and Patrick Delaney. Caldon is the son of Shelly Nittoli Caldon, a 1993 Poland graduate.
By ERIC HAMILTON
Former Poland resident April Rubesa isn’t running from her disease, she’s running against it.
Rubesa, a 1998 graduate of Poland Seminary High School, was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis in 2005. The ailment affects as many as 500,000 Americans.
Colitis causes inflammation of the digestive or gastrointestinal tract. Ulcerative Colitis affects only the colon, or large intestine of the GI tract.
Rubesa, 30, is still affected by the disease, decided to raise money to help find a cure. The best way she knew how was to do something she’s passionate about — run.
She joined forces with the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America and completed her fifth Boston Marathon April 19. With the help of friends and family, Rubesa has raised over $3,500 for the foundation. Her extended goal is $5,000.
It hasn’t been easy.
“It’s weird because my stomach didn’t bother me, but I got blood blisters on my feet about halfway through and it slowed me down,” said Rubesa. “I was hoping to do better this time and I know I’m capable of running faster. It was a perfect day and great running weather.
Despite her difficulties, she still finished with her best time of 4 hours, 23 minutes. She was pacing for 3 hours, 55 minutes before the blisters got the best of her feet.
“The whole experience is grueling, and I was running for charity to raise money, and that adds more stress. I think I miss the fun part of running a little, so next time I run one, I’ll do it more for fun.”
Running has been a part of Rubesa’s life dating back to her time on the Poland track team in seventh grade under Dan Flood. It is a stress reliever for her, and she made running a marathon one of her goals years ago.
She moved to Boston seven years ago to be near her brother and sister. She got addicted to the running community and made a promise to herself that she’d run the Boston Marathon once. Once has turned into five times — so far.
“It’s like a bug that bites you,” Rubesa said. “The feeling you get when you cross the finish line is great. It’s a great feeling knowing that you accomplished that. If I can finish the Boston Marathon, I can do anything. After this last time, I was saying that I’m not going to do it again. But the next day, I was on the Internet looking for the next race.”