Abington Native To Run 269.2 Miles For New England Innocence Project

By Eve Rabinowitz

ABINGTON, PA -- With a coveted qualifying time, Abington Native Will Swenson was already set to run the most prestigious marathon in the country. Though many would consider the challenge of marathon training enough to take on, Will has decided to once again make his Boston Marathon run even more meaningful by using the run to raise funds and awareness for the New England Innocence Project (NEIP) and their Running for Innocence Campaign for the third year in a row.

This year, Will is increasing his fundraising and physical challenges with a goal of raising $5,000 through five runs - a total of 269.2 miles, what he is calling The Endurance Series. Starting with the Boston Marathon on April 17th, Will also plans to complete the Ultra Race of Champions (100K race in Virginia), The North Face Endurance Challenge (50M race in Massachusetts), TARC Fall Classic (50K race in Massachusetts), and the Ghost Train (100M race in New Hampshire).

“For me, running truly represents the privilege and gift of freedom,” said Swenson. “Knowing that the money I raise will go directly towards giving another person the freedom they might not see without NEIP’s help makes the experience of training for and running the Boston Marathon truly invaluable.”

For a small organization like NEIP, the privilege of having a qualified runner choose to use their run to support their organization is not lost. Denise McWilliams, Executive Director of NEIP, said “We are so grateful to count Will as a member of our community. We know that a conviction doesn’t necessarily mean that a person is guilty, and the number of innocent men and women released from prison climbs steadily each year, proving that the system does, in fact, make mistakes. The money Will raises through Running for Innocence will go directly towards the investigative, scientific and technical expertise needed to bring NEIP's cases to trial - our work would simply not be possible without people like him.”

To learn more about Will or make a donation towards his goal of $5,000 visit: https://www.crowdrise.com/runn...

Image via Eve Rabinowitz