TeamAIDAsha Marathon Program 2006
Train…Run…Support a Cause

Cambridge, MA April 9, 2006:  Continuing the successful marathon fundraisers in the last three years, Asha for Education and AID, Boston/MIT chapters, are teaming up again this year for their annual marathon fundraiser. With over 40 runners and $120,000 raised over the last three years, the marathon is the largest fundraising event for both AID and Asha Boston/MIT chapters. Modeled after the larger marathon fundraising programs such as, “Team in Training” and “Team Asha”, TeamAIDAsha trains runners with any level of experience to complete their marathon while raising funds for educational, social and economic development in India.

Asha for Education (www.ashanet.org/mit/) is a secular organization dedicated to change in India by focusing on basic education with the belief that education is a critical requisite for socio-economic change. In keeping with this focus, Asha volunteers are involved with and support projects that are secular and have an education-related component to them. Association for India's Development, Inc. (AID, www.aidboston.org) is a voluntary non-profit organization committed to promoting sustainable, equitable and just development in India, by working with grassroots organizations and movements in India. AID supports and initiates efforts in various interconnected spheres such as education, livelihoods, natural resources, health, women's empowerment and social justice.

The TeamAIDAsha marathon program provides the necessary training, a professional coach and the support system to help first-time as well as experienced runners meet their goals. 26.2 miles may seem an impossible task to many first-timers, but the camaraderie of the team training together provides the impetus and motivation for runners to keep going. “Our coach perhaps summed up our experience perfectly - some of us might never run another marathon again but training for a marathon while raising funds made us believe in our ability to set and strive towards achieving goals,” said Subhashish Bhattacharya, who ran in the Marine Corps marathon in 2004, and has since gone on to run multiple marathons. “The experienced runners acted as mentors towards the novice runners. When we began training, most of us had doubts about being able to complete the marathon. By the end of the training these doubts had transformed to restrained optimism on our prospects.”  

Adds Rajeev Soneja who also ran the Marine Corps marathon in 2004, “Even after all these months, memories of the training still remain and the overwhelming feeling of accomplishment is something which I will treasure forever”. “Running the marathon for the team was the ideal way to combine my personal goal of running a marathon with a cause I felt deeply for. I’d definitely encourage first time runners to give it a try – it’s not as impossible a goal, as they might think!” says Soumen Ganguly, who ran marathons in 2004 and 2005.

The 2006 program gets underway with two information sessions

    * Sunday, April 30, 2006 at 3:00PM at MIT, Room 35-225

            (77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA)

    * Saturday, May 6, 2006 at 11:30AM at The Southborough Library

            (25 Main Street, Southborough, MA)

For further details, visit www.teamaidasha.org or e-mail teamaidasha@yahoo.com

or click on
http://www.teamaidasha.org/2006/TAA06Publicize.aspx

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