Local teacher realizes dream of running Boston Marathon

Markie (left) is just one of the many children at the Michael Carter Lisnow Respite Center that Becky Tripp will be helping when she runs the Boston Marathon April 20. SUBMITTED Shrewsbury - When Becky Tripp participates in the 113th running of the Boston Marathon, the run will combine an annual familial rite of spring with one of the most memorable and rewarding moments of her life.

"When you grow up in Hopkinton, like I did, a mile-and-a-half from the starting line, you grow up going to the marathon," said Becky, who is a preschool teacher at Shrewsbury Children's Center. "Over the years I met some of the runners when they would come to my school and my whole family would go down to the start every year and see the runners off and then we would walk back home and watch the end on TV."

On one of those childhood walks back home, Becky, now 25, made a pact with her older sister Cherie, now 28, that someday they wouldn't just watch the Boston Marathon, they would run it.

That someday is Monday April 20.

Becky and Cherie will run the marathon as a fund-raiser for the Michael Carter Lisnow Respite Center in Hopkinton. The center provides emotional and physical support for individuals with disabilities that include learning disorders, autism and cerebral palsy, and their families.

"Running to raise money for the respite center is really exciting for my sister and [me] because we live a mile from the center and we go by it on nearly every one of our runs," Becky said.

Supporters can go online to make donations in Becky's name. Becky's web address is www.firstgiving. com/rebeccatripp.