Crossing the finish line for parents, South Shore Health System

The 122^nd Boston Marathon on April 16, 2018 was one for the record books with frigid temperatures and driving rain that challenged even the most seasoned distance runners. For Barbie Campbell, the 26.2-mile race from Hopkinton to Boston held special significance. It marked the Braintree resident’s fourth, fastest, and final Boston Marathon.

Campbell, 52, says nothing can compare to this year’s grueling marathon, a race she completed in four hours and 36 minutes, breaking five hours for the first time and raising over $10,000 for cancer care as part of Team South Shore Health System.

Honoring mom and dad

Campbell ran in memory of her parents Theresa and Paul Cahill of Quincy who passed away within months of each other. “My parents were with me every step of the way. Knowing I was honoring them and raising money for cancer patients made all the difference in the world,” says Campbell, noting that Marathon Monday was also her dad’s birthday.

She credits Marathon Coalition coaches who partnered with Team SSHS this year. Campbell began training with them in November 2017 after submitting an application outlining her running experience and connection to South Shore Hospital and South Shore Hospice, two organizations that cared for her parents.

“Every Saturday, I met my team and trainers for long runs in Newton. We started with five miles and added a mile each week, finishing with a 20-mile run,” says Campbell whose intense regimen also included solo outdoor runs as well as treadmill workouts and weight lifting at the gym. Fridays and Sundays were rest days. “Our coaches taught us that rest is as important as training. I listened to what they said and never had a serious injury.”

Braving the elements

When Marathon Monday and its ominous weather arrived, Campbell felt ready – physically and mentally. “I learned not to think of the marathon as running 26 miles, but as running one mile, 26 times. I broke the race into sections and enjoyed every mile. I ran in the moment,” she explains.

This philosophy proved invaluable as she braved 30-degree temperatures coupled with constant rain and whipping winds. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” admits Campbell who handed her soaking poncho to a young bystander at mile five and stripped off her gloves soon after.

Recalling her frozen fingers and the runners taken off the course with hypothermia, Campbell said she found strength in her parents’ tenacity. “My dad battled lung and throat cancer and my mom learned she had advanced cancer weeks after he died. She received hospice care for two months and never once complained.”

Crossing the finish line

Campbell surpassed her Team SSHS fundraising goal early on. She’s grateful for the generosity of family and friends and her clients at Olivia’s Hair Boutique in Braintree where she is a stylist.

Looking back, Campbell recalls feeling elated at mile 26 when she spotted her daughter, Brianna, on the sidelines. “There she was soaking wet, waving a sign. I hugged her and sprinted to the finish,” she says.

Her husband, Brian, not a runner, also hustled to the finish line. He hadn’t expected Campbell to best her previous Boston Marathon time by half an hour – in the cold, in the rain.

Someone, she says, was watching over her.