Close the Loop 5K

When I registered for the Close the Loop 5K, I had two goals: raise $1,000 for breast reconstruction awareness and get myself ready to run the race.

I had spent years working in plastic surgery practice operations, so the cause was familiar to me. I understood the importance of patient education, access to care, and the support that extends beyond the operating room. Participating seemed like a worthwhile way to contribute while giving myself a physical challenge.

I registered, created a fundraising page, and started training.

What I didn't anticipate was how much I would enjoy everything that followed.

A Little Competition

The fundraising started with a few personal messages to friends, family, and colleagues. People were generous, and the contributions began adding up. Before long, I had reached my original $1,000 goal and climbed to the top of the individual fundraising leaderboard.

I was pleased with the result. I had accomplished what I set out to do.

Then another participant took first place.

I hadn't registered with the intention of competing in fundraising, but discovering that someone had passed me certainly got my attention. I reached out to a few more people, picked up another donation, and reclaimed the lead.

It was friendly competition in service of a good cause, and I enjoyed having a scoreboard.

The funny thing is that the largest part of my fundraising campaign came after I had already exceeded my goal.

Finding an Audience

Once I started thinking about how to reach people beyond my immediate network, the effort took on a life of its own.

I designed a flyer with a QR code linking directly to my fundraising page and arranged to have copies printed. I started looking for coffee shops and neighborhood businesses willing to display them.

I also began reaching out to Houston media outlets.

What started with a few emails turned into submissions to community calendars, newspapers, television stations, radio programs, and neighborhood publications. I learned which outlets accepted public event listings, which preferred editorial pitches, and how differently each publication approached community coverage.

One publication posted the event, and another editor reached out requesting photographs. Each response helped me understand a little more about how local coverage works.

I posted about the fundraiser on LinkedIn and asked people to share it with their networks.

None of this was particularly complicated on its own. It was a series of small actions: finding the right contact, preparing a submission, sending a message, following up, and moving to the next opportunity.

I couldn't tell you how many donations resulted directly from those efforts. The most reliable support continued to come from people I knew.

But I enjoyed learning how the distribution worked, and I liked the idea that someone outside my immediate circle might discover the cause because I had made the effort.

Getting Ready to Run

Meanwhile, I had a race to prepare for.

I had been spending plenty of time on the elliptical, but running outdoors was a different experience. I began training at Memorial Park, gradually finding my pace and building confidence.

In the final week, I ran two uninterrupted miles at approximately eight minutes per mile. I finished feeling like I could have continued, which gave me confidence heading into race day.

I started entertaining the possibility of completing the 5K in under 25 minutes.

The actual race was a different experience.

The course was narrow and crowded, and maintaining a consistent rhythm was more difficult than it had been during training. I pushed hard early, but my endurance didn't hold up the way I had hoped.

I crossed the finish line in 33 minutes and 30 seconds.

It wasn't the time I had been chasing. But I had given the race a genuine effort, completed the distance, and enjoyed the morning.

I was proud of that.

More Than an Individual Effort

One of the most rewarding parts of the experience was having five members of the Vitenas Cosmetic Surgery team join me.

Morgan Janak, Alexis Vitenas, Madison McManus, Javier Sepeda, and Melanie McDonald all participated. After the race, the six of us gathered for a photograph wearing our finisher medals in front of The Plastic Surgery Foundation's backdrop.

That photograph captures something I hadn't necessarily expected when I first registered: what began as an individual challenge had become a shared experience.

The fundraising results were gratifying, too.

With the support of 13 donors, I raised $1,155, exceeding my original $1,000 goal and finishing first among 102 individual fundraisers.

View the fundraising campaign →

The five additional participants contributed another $425 in race registration fees, bringing the combined amount of donations and those registrations to $1,580.

I was proud to finish first in fundraising. But I was just as pleased that people had taken the time to contribute, participate, and encourage one another.

What I'll Remember

I began this experience wanting to support a worthwhile cause and challenge myself physically.

I finished with a medal, a first-place fundraising result, a photograph with five fellow participants, and a better appreciation for how much can grow out of a simple invitation.

I also discovered that I genuinely enjoy running, and that there is something satisfying about bringing people together around a shared objective.

Thank you to everyone who donated, shared the fundraising page, joined the race, or encouraged me along the way. And thank you to The Plastic Surgery Foundation for organizing the event.

The fundraising goal gave me a reason to begin. The people who got involved made the experience worth remembering.

I'm already looking forward to the next one.