I’m occasionally asked about how the Belmont Runners club came to be. After all, we’re eight months old and a real local success story.

It all started ten months ago, with the inaugural Belmont Water Dog Run. After years of hearing doubters say that a community fun run wouldn’t work here, Mary Morrissey Parden, the Belmont Chamber of Commerce, Stephanie Davies, and I made it happen in partnership with so many organizations and people. The first Water Dog Run was a resounding success, with over 900 runners and dogs coming out to celebrate fitness and the Belmont community. This was almost double the turnout we expected and the smiles and gushing praise for the race showed that Belmont was ready for an event like this. Several people who I knew and didn’t know said the same thing: I’ve never felt so good to be part of this City. It brought us together and reminded us that we are all in this together.

I do believe that people want to feel connected to their community. In our busy lives, we often can’t participate in shared experiences with our friends, neighbors, or strangers.

To test this, we created the Belmont Runners club. If annual events can bring people together and contribute to their quality of life, what about creating this kind of community 365 days a year? With others who share an interest in running, fitness, and health? I worked with Theresa Saito on an effort to promote the Belmont Library through some Thursday night runs in late 2018. That morphed into our launching of a dedicated club.

The Belmont Runners club was born last December, at the start of a very wet winter. A winter with historic wildfires that clouded our skies and affected our lungs. And yet, several runners came out on December 6th with flashlights and reflectors and started the club.

It’s been eight months since and the club has grown by leaps and bounds. And all of you have proven that running is alive and well in this area.

So, please participate in this new social organization and make it your own!