Back in 1994, my dad had trained for the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon. He worked his way up to 20 miles for his long run, but at the same time he was training, he was in his second, and most difficult year of law school at Marquette University Law School in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

He ended up deciding to not do the marathon so he could focus on his studies; he felt like he would have plenty of chances in his future to do a marathon. Life got busy after law school and having me and my siblings, then a stroke in 2014 kept him from ever realizing that dream. It was the one and only thing about which he ever expressed any regrets—he really wished he had just sucked it up and run it.

His volunteer work at International Needs was very life-giving and fulfilling for him. He once said, "Even if God totally healed me, I would never return to the corporate legal scene." He loved being able to use his gifts to build God's Kingdom, and his work at International Needs gave him a sense of purpose and meaning.

When the Glen VanderKooi Gospel Outreach Fund was created, he was aware of it and thought it was “really cool.” In March of this year, my dad passed away. Since he never got to complete his dream of running the Milwaukee Marathon, I, along with my three friends Danny Sickles, Jordan Kerkstra, and Micah Huisman, would like to run in his honor. Danny and I will be doing the full marathon, while Jordan and Micah will be running the half. We decided it would be most meaningful to use the opportunity to not only live out his dream of running the marathon, but to also raise funds for a cause very near and dear to his heart, the Glen VanderKooi Gospel Outreach Fund.

If you feel led to support us, you can give right here on this page. We are so grateful to everyone for helping us carry on my dad’s legacy, live out his dream, and grow God’s Kingdom.