Eleven Runners. Five Boroughs. One Finish Line.

Eleven Runners. Five Boroughs. One Finish Line.

Meet CPARF’s Athletes for Accessibility team for the 2026 TCS New York City Marathon

On Sunday, November 1, eleven runners will line up on Staten Island in Athletes for Accessibility jerseys. Hours later, after 26.2 miles, five bridges, and every borough of New York City, they’ll cross the finish line in Central Park.

This is a big year to do it. The 2026 race celebrates the 50th anniversary of the five-borough course, first run in 1976 to celebrate the nation’s Bicentennial and uplift the city. Last year’s race set a world record as the largest marathon ever with 59,226 finishers, and this year drew more than 240,000 applicants from over 160 countries. Nearly two million spectators line the streets every year. And we love this part: NYRR is piloting expanded Para Athletics categories starting with the 2026 marathon!

Getting to the start line is its own marathon. Our runners have trained through a summer of early alarms, long weekend miles, sore knees, and at least one table dropped on a foot. They’ve done it while asking friends, family, coworkers, and neighbors to give. Each set out to raise $5,000 or more, and together they’ve raised $57,910 so far. Every dollar helps make life-changing assistive technology accessible and affordable for people with disabilities.

Here’s who you’ll be cheering for.

Andrew Jacobe
Andrew’s younger brother, Matthew, has CP from an in-utero stroke. Andrew calls him the most appreciative, positive person he knows, and a better golfer than most of his donors. (One donor confirmed this in writing.) Turning 30 inspired Andrew to either get in shape or earn a good injury story. He’s running for Matthew and everyone living with CP, and his community showed up so big he raised his goal.

Sheila Connelly
Sheila is running all 26.2 miles for her younger sister, Erin, who she describes as one of the strongest, most resilient people she knows. Erin inspires her every day, and Sheila’s crowd of supporters is loud about it. Expect plenty of “Go Sheila and Erin!” on race day.

Nick Hines
Nick’s mom, Susan, lives with CP. She’s been his number one supporter his whole life, and this marathon, his first, is his way of saying thank you. Last year she was there at the finish of his first half marathon. This November, she gets to see him go the full distance.

Eric Richmond
Eric and his wife, Caitlin, are parents to Camilla, known to everyone as Millie. Millie has CP, and as Eric puts it, CP is a diagnosis, not a definition of who she is. When the family went looking for real stories from other families and found mostly medical journals, Caitlin started One in a Millie (@0neinamillie on Instagram and oneinamillie.org) so other families feel less alone. Eric is running to keep that momentum going.

Danielle Walsh
Danielle ran NYC back in 2006, just for the challenge. This time, she’s running for her son Joey: “26 miles for my 26-weeker.” Coming back to running at 50 has been humbling, she says. She’s worked through a crush injury and a hip and back strain, and learned to trade pace goals for gratitude and walk breaks. Her reason hasn’t changed once: Joey.

David Schoenholtz
David’s son, Owen, was diagnosed with CP last year. A year later, David is lacing up for 26.2 miles to support the research and innovation that will shape the world Owen grows up in.

Scott Graves
Scott’s supporters know exactly who he’s running for: his daughter, Marni. His donors have turned his race into a game, each pledging a mile to carry for them, so Scott will have a lot of people riding along with him from Staten Island to Central Park.

Gaby Molina
Gaby is a pediatric physical therapist with the San Francisco public schools, working with elementary students with CP. Her whole job is access: building strength and mobility, working on stairs and posture, and getting the right equipment so kids can fully take part in school. She turned 26 on June 26, her golden year, so 26.2 miles felt like the only way to celebrate.

Josie Janisch
Josie is running for a close family friend who has CP. They grew up together, and she’s running to honor him, his family, and all their years of friendship. Josie’s hometown has her back. Families from the Ste. Genevieve du Bois school community have donated one by one, alongside friends cheering in all caps. She’s bringing the energy of that whole crew with her to New York.

Kate Kramer
Kate has loved running for years. This is her first time turning that love into a purpose. She’s inspired by the communities that form around people with disabilities, pushing for access, inclusion, and independence, and she’s proud to run for them.

Kieran Altmann
Kieran knows this course. He’s back for another NYC Marathon, and this time he’s running it with Athletes for Accessibility. The cause means a lot to him, and he’s bringing a simple, generous spirit to race day: every donation is welcome, and so are unlimited cheers. His sign-off says it all: “See you on the finish line.”

How you can help
Pick a runner and give to their page. Share their stories. And if you’re in the city on November 1, find a spot on the course and yell their names. Twenty-six miles is a long way. It gets shorter with you out there.

Meet the full team and follow their progress

In NYC on November 1 and want to be a part of the official Athletes for Accessibility cheer squad? Email Kristie Hagen for details.