Fall River residents running Boston Marathon for cause close to their heart

BOSTON – On April 18, Lillia Eliasson-Parrott, Meredith Forcier and Steve Parrott are running to defy cancer as a member of the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge team in the 126th Boston Marathon®. The Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge team will run in-person this year and will also offer the option of running virtually, due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

For Meredith, her reason for running the marathon is personal.

“I grew up idolizing the Boston Marathon as a Fall River native. I remember going to watch the marathon in 2014 and thinking that I too would want to one day run the marathon as a charity runner raising money for cancer research and patient treatment. Little did I realize, that the following year, I would lose my grandmother to pancreatic cancer. My grandmother is my why behind running the marathon, but since losing her in 2015, I have many other why’s fueling my training and marathon preparation. We know too many people impacted by cancer, and I run so that one day, our loved ones do not have to hear the words that they have cancer. I am honored to have the opportunity to run the Boston Marathon and fulfill a lifelong dream while also raising funds and awareness for Dana Farber and cancer research.”

The Parrotts are a father/daughter duo that will be running together to help fight cancer.

Along with more than 500 Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge teammates from across the United States and around the world, Meredith, Steve, and Lillia will run Massachusetts’ historic marathon route from Hopkinton to Boston to collectively raise $5.5 million for cancer research at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

This year marks the 33rd annual running of the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge. One hundred percent of the money raised by the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge team benefits Dana-Farber’s Claudia Adams Barr Program in Innovative Basic Cancer Research, which supports promising science research in its earliest stages. The Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge has raised more than $105 million for the Barr Program to date.

Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge runners include cancer survivors and patients, and family and friends of those who have been affected by cancer. Each team member must fulfill a basic fundraising commitment:

Invitational runners – runners who receive their entry from Dana-Farber have a fundraising commitment of $7,500.
Own entry runners ­- runners who have joined the DFMC after obtaining their own race entry have a fundraising commitment of $4,000.
Virtual runners – runners participating virtually have a fundraising commitment of $4,000.

To contribute to the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge, visit RunDFMC.org or contact the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge office at (617) 632-1970 or dfmc@dfci.harvard.edu.