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My Brother Garrett, Boston Marathoner for Good.

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I want you to meet my younger brother Garrett. He is running his 27th Boston marathon on April 17. Next Monday, it will also be his 40th marathon in total. He started running in 1986. And for the last few years, he’s been running on behalf of the heather Abbott Foundation.

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Transcript – Please note, this Transcript is AI Generated. It has not had the discerning ears of a real human to edit it, as such, there are bound to be a few errors

Jimmy Tingle 0:00
today’s show we have a very special guest want you to meet my younger brother Garrett. He is running his 27 Boston Marathon and what makes the last few marathons very special here in Boston. He’s running on behalf of the heather Abbott foundation.

Jimmy Tingle 0:21
Hey, everybody, this is Jimmy. Welcome back to another episode of our show. Today’s show we have a very special guest. We are very close, ladies and gentlemen, I want you to meet my younger brother Garrett. He is running his 27th Boston marathon on April 17. Next Monday, it will also be his 40th marathon in total. He started running in 1986. And what makes the last few marathons very special here in Boston. He’s running on behalf of the heather Abbott Foundation. And Gary, welcome to the show.

Garrett Tingle 0:54
How you doing, Jimmy?

Jimmy Tingle 0:55
I’m doing great. Thanks so much for taking time out from your busy training schedule to sit down for a few minutes and talk to us. You look fantastic. This is the new gym

Garrett Tingle 1:07
working out?

Jimmy Tingle 1:08
No Do you so do you? So Gary, tell us first of all, what is the heather rabbit foundation?

Garrett Tingle 1:15
Oh, good question. So Heather Abbott is as a woman who was a victim at the marathon bombing. And she tragically lost her leg at the bombing. And she was a mess, like everybody was a mess after that. But she really resigned herself to wanting to do something, and to help other people who went who have gone through traumatic limb loss. So she started a foundation called the heather Abbott foundation.org. And since then, they’ve raised collectively millions of dollars to help provide prosthesis for victims of tragic limb loss. That can be kids that can be that can be anybody. Anybody who’s lost a limb. That’s who Heather is. She’s an amazing woman. She’s a very, very generous woman and very dedicated to the cause and really to helping people out. And I think it’s helped her I know it’s helped her as well. Right? It’s helped me to just be a part of it.

Jimmy Tingle 2:21
Right? Have you met her in person? Yeah.

Garrett Tingle 2:24
Yeah. She’s a wonderful woman. And, you know, they’ll the whole network is great. Kevin force is another fellow that runs the whole program. And he’s been fantastic. And you know, this is rippling effect all around, there are people that are a part of it, who were a part of it continue to be a part of it. From all over the country, people have contributed and been a part of the heather Abbott Foundation,

Jimmy Tingle 2:49
right? So I imagine it must give you it’s an added benefit. If I’m running a marathon, it’s hard enough in terms of the practice, you know, the training and the commitment that it takes. But when you’re doing it for something like that, does that help motivate you?

Garrett Tingle 3:03
So let me tell you, let me back up a little bit. For years, I’ve been running. Okay, within the only purpose is for my own benefit from my own competitive base. So I run for myself, I run for time, I run to do as well as I can do possibly qualify things like that. And I never thought about running for charity. And people used to say to me, Well, what charity run for not running for charity I’m running. Because I have a number and I want to do better. I’ve been training. And one year, about four years ago, I ran a marathon and I had to drop out because I was injured. I was really, really bummed out. Because I’m like, now I can’t run Boston. And you know, for 27 years, I’ve been running Boston. So it was like, oh, woe is me. But what what’s the big deal? So I met just coincidentally, on the way to the Patriots game that morning, after the marathon that I dropped out of. I was in a car with a woman whose she said, Well, why, you know, why don’t you run for my friends, my friends fundraiser. And I was like, I never thought of that. I never thought about running for someone else. I said, sure. I’ll run that. So that’s how we made this connection. It was very serendipitous. And it became very meaningful, and it still is meaningful. And I just love being a part of the group. Now. You meet people from all over the country. And as there’s a little bit more of a sense of purpose, because you know, what you’re doing is is going to help someone else. That’s the name of the game.

Jimmy Tingle 4:38
Excellent. So you’ve been running it for the last four or five years on behalf of the heather Abbott foundation. Any idea how much you personally have helped raise for the foundation?

Garrett Tingle 4:50
I think. I think we’re up in in close to $40,000 a little under 40,000. Excellent. You know, that’s a source of pride I ran last year With my son Garrett, so collectively raised close to 20,000. And this year, the fundraising has been going pretty well, too. And the previous two years, I think we put it all together, we’re in into 40,000, maybe 40,000. Plus.

Jimmy Tingle 5:15
That’s excellent. Yeah. So Gary, in the show notes, there’s going to be a link if people want to contribute to the heather Abbott Foundation. And what’s the name of that link? Yeah.

Garrett Tingle 5:26
Okay, so you’re gonna see in the, it’s Heather Abbott foundation.org is the is the link for Heather Abbott’s website. In the Link, what I’m going to put in there is it’s going to say, Garrick tingles Boston Marathon link. And if you click on that, you can read our little narrative, my little narrative. And if you’d like to contribute, you’re more than welcome to. And we would really appreciate that.

Jimmy Tingle 5:52
So if they want to contribute to the heather Abbott Foundation, they can go through the link that says Gareth tingles Boston Marathon, and that that way, you’ll at least get credit for it. And they can read up a little bit about her there. And there’ll be a snippet there from her interview with channel seven. And if people want to watch the marathon, there’s a restaurant an eighth of a mile from the finish line, that office, the second story room, and they have a buffet, and there’s a cover charge to get in. But if you attend that you can watch the finish of from like noon until five o’clock. The day of the marathon, there’s it’s a bar, there’s beverages, there’s food, it’s kind of a party atmosphere, it’s a watch party. And Gary, we’ll put that link in the show notes as well, right?

Garrett Tingle 6:39
Sure. It’s roshambo is the name of the restaurant. Okay. And it’s 900 Boylston Street. And the watch party is specifically for people in the heather rabbit foundation network. So okay, if you made a contribution, or if you just like to buy a ticket and go to it, this food buffet style there, they’ll be serving that all day. And they’re beverages that add a cash buyer as well. And it’s a it’s a private room. Pretty cool. And you’re gonna see people who have been victims of tragic loss of limb, not just from the bombing, but from all over. That’s pretty, pretty profound when you meet people and how they tell me, you know, one person told me, you know, Gary, you never know, how your life can change in just five minutes. Yeah, yeah. From accident. Your whole world just changed. So these are, you know, athletic people, young people, people, middle age. It’s everybody. And, you know, that’s the people there that didn’t lose limbs. That will be there that lost limbs at at Boston as well. So yeah, great,

Jimmy Tingle 7:49
Gary, um, well, you know, I’m going to be there. I’m trying to, I think my wife, Catherine is going to be there. If she can get off work. Seamus, my son might be there, as well as if he can get out of work. Don’t tell anybody they get out of work to do. But if they can, they will be there. Well, it’s a holiday too. So they might, you know, it’s Monday, the 17th. So, there’s, um, I think we, there’s a good chance we’ll be there. I know, I’ll be there. My sister will still be there. We always tried to get down to the finish line, when Gary was wondering, for the last 27 years, some would, sometimes with better luck than other times, because it’s not always easy getting down to the finish line. But I got some great pictures. You’ll see one today on the website when we post this podcast. So Gary, when you first started running for the marathons, that was 1986? Yeah. Did you like have this apprehension about doing it? Like was there a doubt that geez, I don’t know if I can actually do a whole marathon? How, what was that process like of training for the very first one, because I went out for a run today, and I haven’t run in a while. And it’s not a marathon, but it was just, you know, for like, I don’t know, 45 minutes or something. I felt tremendous after it. Just like, and I haven’t run in like three or four weeks. And I said, while I’m doing the interview on the marathon, I gotta at least get out there and get a taste of what it’s like. But the feeling you get when you finish a run is pretty amazing. So what was your experience? What was your process? When that very first one?

Garrett Tingle 9:18
Well, first thing I would say is like, whatever form of exercise feeds a person. You know, what I mean? Feed it feed you spiritually, emotionally and physically. That’s beautiful. And some for some people that’s running doesn’t just have to be running. That can be a piece of what you want to do. running, cycling, anything, walking, whatever, whatever, intrinsically makes you feel good. You get that? You get that that kick. Your body is telling you, your brain is telling you it’s doing you’re doing something good for me. I always say my drug of choice is running, you know, and it really has been and it just makes me feel really good to know that every day or five to seven days a week, I’m out there. And really just putting one foot in front of the other. And that’s all it is. And you can vary your paces and vary your efforts. But no matter if you if you run a quarter mile or 26, two or 50k, or whatever, is the level of accomplishment for that day. That’s what I feel like today. I did something good for myself. Rested day, I don’t have to worry about it. I’m going to be alright. But to answer your question. Yeah, I didn’t know anything about running anything at all. The reason I started running, it was really, I wasn’t totally happy with my body composition. And because I was athletic all my life and all sudden, I had to slow down. And I didn’t know it’s just people say you look different Garrett. And I was like, wow, so anyway, I, I just literally put on a pair of Chuck Taylors and went out and started running. I was running, you know, a couple of days a week. And that’s all I was doing maybe, maybe 15 miles a week. And when I said it, you know, I used to like watching the Boston Marathon because it was our day, the Boston Marathon is our day, we’re the only state that’s celebrates Patriots Day. And it’s a it’s a holiday just for us. So it was always the marathon was on that day. And I used to always get amped up watching these guys, the great Billy Rogers, and, and, and others, you know, jumping on sailing descent, and, you know, the list goes on Alberto Salazar. And so I used to just get amped up watching them. I said, I want to run more. So I just go out and run a little bit more that day. Maybe I’d like just marathon Monday, something going. And I said next year, I’m going to do it. But I literally tell you, I only was running probably 20 miles a week, which is not a lot if you’re training for a marathon. So the first idea was just to finish. And as I was very scared about finishing, I didn’t think I could. And I talked to a good friend of mine. And you know him to Peter pack. Yeah. Who was a lifelong marathoner. He has suffered from Ms. Still is moving every single day. He was a Cambridge Poet Laureate for several years. And he’s just a great, great person, and with a lot of intrinsic beauty. And I love the guy, and he’s helped me forever. But he got me through that first marathon. He said, Jarrett, nobody finishes the marathon. Feeling good? Nobody. So you’re not going to feel good, but you’re gonna get through it, you can get through it. And it was that was the night before. And it was just that little vote of confidence. I said, I can get through it. And I did. I got through it. And it was great. And it was, it was a lot of fun. And then you get the bug. Well, if I had this Irish ran this time, now, if I really practice, could I run better? And then it just keeps going, what did they say? That success is when opportunity and preparation meet, the better you train, the better you run. But it doesn’t have to be about running for time. It’s just running for enjoyment, and your fitness, your emotional, spiritual, and your physical health. And if that works for you, that’s great. And if it doesn’t try something else,

Jimmy Tingle 13:10
and I suppose when you take time off from it you to feel Do you feel kind of a little bit off your game, if you go back a couple of weeks without running, do you feel like groggy or cranky or anything,

Garrett Tingle 13:21
you have to be smart, if you don’t take your rest of the body will rest you it’ll give you an injury, or you’re gonna have a stress fracture or something like that, or, you know, you’re gonna stop, you feel some ailments. So I’ve been fortunate where I can slow down for, you know, a week, I’ll take a week off, but I don’t like to take a lot of time off. But that’s just me. It doesn’t matter. You know, you be you do what? Again, do what feed you.

Jimmy Tingle 13:47
Right? And Gary, how old are you now? 6666. And you’re running your 40th marathon at my

Garret Tingle 13:54
father and your father used to say, Gary, you’re only young once you get the immature forever. And I work with kids. So I say the reason I get along with you is because neither one of us have a full frontal lobe developed. So yeah, we have a lot of fun with that.

Jimmy Tingle 14:14
But it’ll be your 27th Boston and your 40s and you’re 66 years old. So it’s very inspirational. And not only a run in for your yourself your own personal health and, and, you know, equilibrium, but they have the rabbit foundation and actually doing good works by by doing something that you love to do. So it sounds like it’s the perfect fit.

Garret Tingle 14:37
It’s running with a purpose. You know, it’s running with a purpose beyond your own my own selfish interest, right? Yeah. I know. It’s kind of cool, running for a charity to meet people and you’re just helping to do something because honestly, in my life, never really did a lot of good things. This is a good thing. You know, somehow it got put in my way. And I like you know, I like me Part of it. So,

Jimmy Tingle 15:01
well, I object to the fact that you never did a lot of good thing. You’ve been a teacher for many, many years, and you’ve helped a ton of kids. And, you know, Gary’s very modest, but one of his projects was to bring kids to New Orleans and build houses after Hurricane Katrina. And they call it the mass nine for the nine. And they would bring his whole class down to New Orleans. And that would be there for a week in April. And he started doing this after Hurricane Katrina, and he did it many years following that hurricane. I don’t know. Are you still doing that, Gary?

Garrett Tingle 15:34
Well, we we also went to Puerto Rico after Maria. Right. And that was because we did 13 years in in New Orleans. And then we, we kind of saturated the market, there’s still a lot of work that needs to be done there. But we figured that’s because Maria happens. So we went to Puerto Rico three years ago, and did this basically the same thing work with the same organization. The St. Bernard project.org, was another great organization. They did disaster relief, and they hooked us up in Puerto Rico. And we worked there for a week, we had a wonderful time. And the learning is incredible with the kids experience, what they go through and how they grow from that. Yeah, is great. And then COVID happened, and we haven’t been back since COVID. We’re going to try to get back next year and, and do some service work somewhere. The whole idea behind it was we want to use our carpentry skills to help return a family to their home. Yeah, that’s what it was all about. And it was great. It was fun and loved it.

Jimmy Tingle 16:38
So you are doing great work. And you have been for a long time. And this Monday, folks, if you want to watch the marathon in person, there’ll be a link in the show notes to the restaurant at 900 Boylston Street, it’s an eighth of a mile from the finish line starts at noon. There’ll be complimentary food, there’s a cash bar, and you can watch the race both from inside and outside on the street. And there’ll be the whole Heather Abbott foundation community will be there supporting that cause and if you would like to contribute with cash, or have, you know, online, you can do that. And the link Gary to your particular website is what now in the show notes

Garrett Tingle 17:19
say on the link, it’s going to say, Garrett tingles Boston Marathon. It’ll be in your show notes.

Jimmy Tingle 17:25
guaranting goes Boston Marathon in the show notes. Yeah. Excellent. Gary. Great to see you. I’ll see you Monday. And thanks for the nice party we had last night we a little birthday party.

Garrett Tingle 17:38
Follow new Jimmy.

Jimmy Tingle 17:40
If I can’t believe it. I’m 68. And now Gary’s got me thinking about doing a marathon. I said, I don’t know. Yeah, I did. I did for today. This time next year, I might be ready.

Garrett Tingle 17:53
Thanks so much, Jimmy. Thanks so much, everybody for listening in and helping out.

Jimmy Tingle 17:57
Thanks, Gary. Love you keep up the great work. Thanks, everybody, for joining us for another show today. This is the Jimmy tingle show. And what we’re trying to do is raise spirits, funds and awareness for people and Nonprofits and Charities that doing good work in this world. And we just thank you so much for being part of our community. This is how we’re trying to use our skills as my skills as an entertainer and as a humorous to elevate people and organizations that are doing good things are out here in Massachusetts and around the world. And there’s a zillion of them. So it’s great to be connected to my brother Gary is from Marathon efforts and the heather Abbott foundation. Thanks, everybody. We’ll see you next week.

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