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\\u201cIt was absolutely the best day.\\u201d

This is how Tony Anderson, who began a journey of completing a marathon in all 50 states to raise money for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northwestern Michigan, an organization near and dear to his heart, describes his final 26.2 mile race. It was the culmination of 17 years of running marathons -- he ultimately ran a total of 51, including Washington, D.C. -- to support Big Brothers Big Sisters and those final miles proved incredibly meaningful.\\xa0

\\u201cMarathon #1 was in Traverse City in 2003, and so for the last one to be in Traverse City -- pandemic aside, as bad and as awful as that has been -- there really was no better way to end it,\\u201d Tony says of running a 26.2-mile route that, because of COVID, wasn\\u2019t a traditional race but rather one that was mapped out in northern Michigan just for the occasion. Ultimately, it was an event equally if not more memorable. \\u201cThere wasn\\u2019t a better day than that last one. I got to run a marathon in front of everybody I care about. 26 miles of family, co-workers and friends and community.\\u201d\\xa0

Tony is a proud husband, dad, and grandpa who serves as general manager of Cherryland Electric Cooperative. He\\u2019s been on the MRG show in the past to talk about his amazing journey (listen to this episode from 2017 and read more about Tony\\u2019s journey and its beginnings in this MRG blog post), and he joins Heather and fellow runner and Big Brothers Big Sisters supporter Chris Girrbach on this latest episode about tackling epic adventures and goals in the name of supporting children in need.\\xa0

Chris Girrbach, a dad and local business owner in Traverse City, was inspired by Tony and has decided to embark on a 15-20 year journey to help raise awareness and funding for Big Brothers Big Sisters. He is aiming to participate in 50 triathlons in 50 states, with a plan of 3-4 triathlons a year.\\xa0

\\u201cI\\u2019ve learned a lot about Big Brothers Big Sisters over the past several years, and the many challenges and heartaches the children in this program face. I wanted to do my part to help BIGS the best way I know how. Some kids get the short end of the stick, and Bigs makes a world of difference to those kids, so it\\u2019s the least I can do.\\u201d

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If you enjoy what you\\u2019re hearing on the Michigan Runner Girl show, we\\u2019d be so grateful if you\\u2019d take a few moments to write a review on iTunes. This will help more runners and Michigan lovers like yourself find the podcasts. Thank you!! Also, the quickest way to get the podcasts is to subscribe to the show via iTunes or via Stitcher or your favorite podcast app. A special thanks to the talented Jonny Tornga for producing the show.

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