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When Hilary Baude isn’t teaching, anyone can usually find her on a gravel path running.“I started running as a way to process and kind of move through some tough emotions,” said Baude.Baude relied on running as an escape from reality because life hasn’t always been easy.

At ten years old, Jaelle Bornman began feeling weak while running at school. “We were cheering on her to run, run, run,” said Cornelius Bornman, her dad, “She looked at us, ‘I can’t, I’m tired.’ The next day, we ended up taking her to the emergency room.”

By running 12 marathons in 12 months, Matt Cavanaugh and Hilary Baude hope to show that organ donors can lead healthy, active lives.

Cornelius Bornman’s life changed forever on October 7, 2021. Bornman and his wife were putting their ten-year-old daughter, Jaelle, to bed one night when she started panting. Her neck started pulsing extremely fast, and her heart rate seemed out of control.

Like most working moms, Hilary Baude, 41, is usually on the go. She’s a kindergarten teacher, has two kids, is an avid marathon runner, and just became the first kidney donor to ever compete in the Ironman World Championships.

Living kidney donor athletes Matt Cavanaugh and Hilary Baude are getting ready to toe the line at the New York City Marathon on Sunday, in what will be their 10th marathon this year to raise awareness for living organ donation.

Army Lt. Col. Matt Cavanaugh (Ret.) is bringing awareness to kidney donation while running the 48th Marine Corp Marathon. He spoke with News4’s Jim Handly before Sunday’s race.

More than 8,500 runners came to Hartford to participate in the annual Eversource Hartford Marathon, Half Marathon and 5K. Each has their own reason for running. Matt Cavanaugh is raising awareness for a cause near to his heart: living kidney donation.

While serving in the U.S. Army in 2021, retired Lt. Col. Matt Cavanaugh donated a kidney to a stranger. “My life’s no different than it was before donating,” Cavanaugh said. Now Cavanaugh and a partner, Hilary Baude, are running 12 marathons across the U.S. to raise awareness about living kidney donation.

If you are looking for inspiration, sit for a moment with Wilson Du and listen to his story. It was 2016 and he was just 34-years old, working hard, and playing harder when his kidneys failed. This weekend, he will run the San Francisco Marathon 5K.