The Hoyt Foundation May Newsletter

From the Office of the President

There were so many very special moments at this year’s Boston Marathon there is no way to do them all justice so I will start with a thank you and then share 3 of the countless moments from Boston.  Once again, I have to say thank you to my family and my support crew that made everything we did possible.  While we were in Boston – Lisa, Troy, Amanda, Ryan, Amber, Cam and Zoe all worked their buts off to make sure all our events went well.

Special Moment #1 – BAA 5K – Being that this was the 10-year anniversary of the Last time Dad and Rick ran Boston together we had an idea.  The idea was to bring a group of runners together at the BAA 5K on Saturday to recreate the famous group finish from the 2014 Marathon.  Check out our then and now.

Special Moment #2 – BAA Gives Back – Saturday night at the BAA Gives Back Gala Rob Gronkowski received the Patriots award.  But the highlight of the night was having the honor of presenting the Dick and Rick Hoyt Award to Black Girls Run!

Special Moment #3 – Surprising Susan – Sunday Morning Susan Hurley hosted her annual Charity Teams Brunch.  This year the 26.2 Foundation and The Hoyt Foundation pulled one over on Susan.  She thought an award was being given to Team Hoyt but we actually presented Susan with the coveted golden olive branch that represents the rich history of marathoning and fundraising.

For more about the marathon see our marathon summary and 2 Duos articles.  The 2024 Team Hoyt Charity team was remarkable.

Thank you all for supporting the Hoyt Family, Team Hoyt and The Hoyt Foundation. 

Boston Marathon Duo Teams

The 2024 Boston Marathon allows Team Hoyt to feature two terrific Dou teams.  Ross Ormond and Andrew McAllister from San Antonio Texas and Chrissy and Bill Davidson the daughter pushing her father wearing the Hoyt Honorary bib.

Ross and Andrew had an ominous start to their trip to Boston.  When they landed on Thursday, they discovered their chair, yes, their racing chair they were planning to use to run on Monday was severely damaged on the flight.  Ross made a panicked call to Russ Hoyt asking for help.  Russ said give me 5 minutes and he knew just who call to save the day.  Mike DiDonato answered Russ’s call said what do you need?  A short drive to Mike’s shop, Southbridge Tool & Manufacturing, the home of Hoyt Running Chairs and a new chair was made ready.  Creating the opportunity to have Ross and Andrew to be safely at the start of the 2024 Boston Marathon, and they had an amazing run of 3:25:19.

For the Hoyt Honorary Duo we were looking for a team to honor the 10 year anniversary of Dick and Rick’s last Boston together.  Rick used to say if I weren’t in this chair I would have Dad sit and I would push him.  When we heard about Bill & Chrissy Davidson, a daughter who pushes her father we knew right then and there they were the right choice.  Chrissy and Bill wanted to make sure they had the right chair for the marathon.  So they went to see… You guessed Mike DiDonato and he put them in just the right chair to be used for this honor.  Chrissy and Bill were everything we thought they would be and more.  They were the highest fundraisers on this year’s team and at the finish line they stopped so Bill could walk across the line revealing a picture of Dad and Rick that they carried in the chair for the entire race!

Boston Marathon Recap

Team Hoyt had an amazing 2024 Boston Marathon.  We had 25 runners in 2024!  Here they are and here’s what they did!

Bill & Chrissy Davidson 

Team Hoyt Honorary Duo.  At the finish line Chrissy stopped and let her Dad climb out of his chair and walk across, it was awe inspiring (see more in 2 Duos article).  Bill & Chrissy were also the #1 Fundraiser this year!  This Duo raised over $24,000.

They ran in a time of 4:47:43

Sid & Allie Starkman

Sid was our #2 Fundraiser for this year’s Boston Marathon.  His wife Allie who had her own number also joined Team Hoyt to help further our cause.  Sid raised over $15,000.

Allie ran in a time of 3:24:27

Sid ran in a time of 3:38:22

Shawn Hoyt

Shawn was our #3 Fundraiser for this year’s Boston Marathon.  Shawn was planning for a PR to be beat his time from 2001 of 3:26 but an injury prior to the marathon slowed him a bit but it did not prevent him from showing his Yes You Can spirit.  Shawn raised over $15,000.

Shawn ran in a time of 4:37:58

Becca Pizzi

Becca was an amazing ambassador for Team Hoyt.  She has completed the 777 or World Marathon Challenge consisting of running 7 Marathons on 7 Continents in 7 Days! Twice!! She holds the world record for the event and when she runs Boston she runs for Team Hoyt!

Becca ran in a time of 3:13:50

Zdeno Chara

Zdeno the former Bruins captain has become an amazing distance runner following his NHL career.  He is running marathons all over the world.  When he runs in Boston he runs for Team Hoyt!

Zdeno ran in a time of 3:30:52

Phil Dumontet

Phil is the creator of Boulderthon one of highest ranked and fastest growing Marathons in the world.  Phil is quite an accomplished runner himself and was the fastest runner on the Team Hoyt charity team this year in Boston.

Phil ran in a time of 2:51:31

Troy Hoyt

Troy is the grandson of Dick and the nephew of Rick and he runs to keep their memory alive and well from Hopkinton to Boston.  This year Troy was given the distinct honor of being the official starter for the Duo and Handcycle division to remember his uncle as this was the first Boston Marathon since his passing.

Troy ran in a time of 4:18:18

Katie Condon

Katie was generous enough to be running for Point 32 Health and asked if she could direct her fundraising to Team Hoyt. 

Katie ran in a time of 4:47:36

Alyssa Vereneau

Alyssa ran the Boston Marathon for the second for Team Hoyt this year.  Alyssa was a true veteran in her ability to fund raise and by posting a great time. 

Alyssa ran in a time of 4:10:39

Kai Terada-Herzer

Kai ran the Boston Marathon for the second for Team Hoyt this year.  Kai is an amazing representative of Team Hoyt also runs for his father.

Kai ran in a time of 3:34:44

Michael Houllahan 

Mike was a Boston rookie and a marathon rookie but he didn’t fundraise or run like a rookie.  He nailed it.

Mike ran in a time of 3:34:34

Elleanor Jennings

This was Ellie’s first marathon but you would not have known based on her performance.  She exceeded her fundraising goal and had an amazing run time.

Ellie ran in a time of 3:55:55

Kathy Logan

Kathy traveled up from Louisianan and showed us her true southern charm in how well she represented Team Hoyt.

Kathy ran in a time of 6:26:48

Chris Tanaka

Chris has supported Team Hoyt through features at WBZ but his fundraising support and strong run on Marathon Monday really open our eyes to his commitment to supporting inclusion.

Chris ran in a time of 4:44:53

Chris Byrne

Chris ran for Team Hoyt and for his grandfather.  He truly honored both with his run on marathon Monday.

Chris ran in a time of 5:06:51

Caitlin Forrest

Caitlin has a strong connection to the Hoyt Family and it showed in her effort to fundraise and have a great day running for Team Hoyt.

Caitlin ran in a time of 6:15:34

Nicole Woodbury

Nicole ran to show her personal commitment to inclusion but also because she lives the mission of Team Hoyt.

Nicole ran in a time of 5:23:48

Nicole Comeau 

Nicole has demonstrated how to be a valuable ambassador for all things inclusion in her representation of Team Hoyt.

Nicole ran in a time of 5:19:30

Ross Ormond & Andrew McAllister

Ross & Andrew had quite the adventure traveling to Boston for this run (see more in 2 Dous article).  Their run on Monday was impressive as they were the 7th Duo to finish.

Ross & Andrew ran in a time of 3:25:19

Lyndsay & Nate Kuder

Lyndsay & Nate won our award for most creative fundraisers for their always entertaining fundraising videos.  They also had a great day on the course.

Lyndsay ran in a time of 5:40:04

Nate ran in a time of 5:52:56

Blake Molina

Blake has been repping Team Hoyt very well as an ambassador all over the Atlanta area, so it was great to see his energy on display here is Boston.

Blake ran in a time of 4:19:26

Hoyt Foundation Impact

On Monday May 6, 2024 Russ Hoyt was joined by Nate Kuder to present a check for $50,000 to support the Rick Hoyt Augmentative Communications Endowment Fund which supports patient care and material purchases for augmentative communication and assistive technology at Boston Children’s Hospital.

During the meeting Nick and Tom two young men who use augmentative communication devices showed us how the donation has impacted their lives.

Team Hoyt Memorial Race

Did you know that May is mobility awareness month?  What is the best way to celebrate??

By joining us for the…

Team Hoyt Memorial YES YOU CAN Run Together!

During the run or the walk, you will go past the iconic YES YOU CAN statue and the start line of the Boston Marathon.  What a course!

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