This year's Chicago Marathon was canceled because of the pandemic, but a West Humboldt Park nun wasn't going to let that stop her from running, especially since she was running to help others.
Sister Stephanie Baliga raised more than $108,000 by running the marathon on a treadmill in a church basement on Saturday. All of the money she raised is going to the Mission of Our Lady of the Angels, a food bank and Catholic community center that helps people in need.
“There’s no way I’d get on a treadmill and run a marathon for no reason,” she told CBS Chicago.
This wasn't Baliga's first time taking on the 26.2 mile run. She's been running in the Chicago Marathon since 2011. Every year, she also leads the Mission's charity team in the marathon.
Baliga was so certain that the marathon was going to happen that she made a promise to run it on the treadmill if it didn't, WGN9 reported. She held up her end of the deal and broadcast her entire run on Zoom. Nuns cheered Baliga on from inside the basement. Even her childhood hero, Olympic long distance runner Deena Kastor joined the Zoom call to root for Baliga.
Asides from running to support a good cause, Baliga also wanted to break a world record. She wanted to be the first women to record a treadmill marathon time. Baliga was able to achieve that by finishing with a time of 3 hours and 33 minutes. She didn't beat her personal best of 2 hours and 32 minutes, but Baliga was excited about what she accomplished.
Baliga raised almost $95,000 during her run, and donations keep coming in. Donations can be made through Baliga's fundraiser page.
Photo: Getty Images