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Team Fox New Member Moment: Join Sisters Christina Dahl and Kim Olson in San Diego

Team Fox New Member Moment: Join Sisters Christina Dahl and Kim Olson in San Diego

Today’s new member moment shines a spotlight on sisters and first-time Team Fox members, Christina Dahl and Kim Olson. After their father, who lived with Parkinson’s disease (PD) for many years passed away, they sought to find a cure and honor other individuals living with PD. Christina and Kim will join Team Fox in San Diego for our first year at the 2016 Suja Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon and ½ Marathon. Team Fox chatted with Christina and Kim to discuss pre-race rituals, what pushes them to cross the finish and the legacy of their dad.

You, too, can put your running shoes to work in support of a cure. Join us in San Diego and run to help put an end to Parkinson’s!

Team Fox: Congrats on participating in your first event with Team Fox! What inspired you to join?

Kim: Christina and I share a passion and deep interest for helping people who have been affected by Parkinson’s disease. Our dad was amazingly compassionate and respected as a kind, caring and gentle man. Even at the end of his life he was concerned for others and his family’s well-being. I feel that by joining Team Fox, we’ll carry on his legacy of caring.

Christina: We are in awe of the people who raise money for The Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF) and we share in the community’s desire to find a cure for PD. Dad was an amazing man who navigated this debilitating disease with dignity for 15 years. I feel that this is the least we can do to honor those that live with this disease and to honor their selfless caregivers.

Team Fox: Is this your first race or have you ran marathons in the past?

Christina: Kim has been running for three years longer than I have and she got me involved. Now we’ve been running together for five years. We lead busy lives, so this is time that we get to spend together.

Team Fox: How do you train? And do you have any warm-up rituals?

Kim: We live a couple of hours away from each other so we train together virtually. We take pictures of the miles on our Garmin watch and share sweaty post-run selfies. Our warm-up rituals often include spending a night together in a hotel with some carb loading and magazines — things we rarely get to do in our normal day-to-day lives!

Team Fox: It’s apparent that you are eager to run this race together as a team. Why is that?

Kim: Running wasn’t a hobby that we did together. Dad was very athletic, had a love for sports and always supported all our activities. And Tina and I are six years apart. We didn’t have a lot in common growing up, but I always looked up to her. She’s been like a second mom to me.

After Dad became ill, my sister and I became a team as we supported and encouraged our parents. This brought us closer together. We continue to embrace life’s challenges and running is part of this — I often think to myself, “Dad faced Parkinson’s disease; I can do one more mile!” I know this attitude is also true for my sister.

Christina: Kim is my only sibling and now that we are both mothers, running has become our therapy. We embrace this challenge as a way to stay active and to become healthy role models for our children. Running for PD is even more of a motivator. I never thought I would be able to run a few miles, let alone 13.1. My first half marathon was tough. I would have never made it to the end without my sister by my side​ — much like life!

Team Fox: What advice would you give to a family wanting to get involved with Team Fox? 

Kim: We’ve found that being involved with organizations like MJFF that support Parkinson’s research has helped with the mourning process — it reaffirms we aren’t alone. It’s also a way for us to honor our Dad and offer support to the entire Parkinson’s community. We are extremely happy to run with Team Fox and we know that Dad is smiling down on us with pride!

Feeling inspired? There’s still time to join the San Diego marathon team, or you can find a local Team Fox event near you!

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