An avid football fan since childhood, I couldn’t resist the opportunity to make women’s flag football my first team sport (ever) when Blondes vs Brunettes DC presented itself to me. Team Bru instantly became a central part of my tribe and it’s a huge added bonus that, more often than not, hanging out with them helps raise funds for the Alzheimer’s Association.
My lifelong love of DC football (for better or worse) is perhaps only exceeded by my lifelong love for my amazing extended family. BvB gave me a chance to play in memory of Uncle Les – a surrogate parent to my dad – and to honor the entire Woodbury/Pearse family in the process.
Given that I didn’t hit the football field – or any field – until I was 27, it’s safe for you to assume that I wasn’t a super athletic kid. I did, however, discover running a couple of years out of college. For a long time, I said I’d never run a chipped race – it was all about the sense of accomplishment and the #runstagram for me – but eventually, after a couple of novelty 5ks, one of my friends got me signed up for a half marathon.
Training for that half coincided with a lot of BvB practice, but it was satisfying to know that, as exhausting as all of that newfound athletic activity was, I was supporting an important cause with every step. Since then, I’ve been on and off the running wagon a lot, but whether I’m conditioning with the team, getting some alone time in Rock Creek Park, or walking to and from the bar, I’m logging those Charity Miles for BvB and the Alzheimer’s Association!
You can learn more about me and the cause at act.alz.org/goto/Bridget2016. Don’t forget to join our team @BvBDC on the Charity Miles app, and log your own miles for the Alzheimer’s Association!