Marathon Runner Returning to Boston Next Week

By Jonathan Weaver

A year ago, Melissa Kemp of Worthington finished the Boston Marathon.

About an hour before two bombs exploded near the finish line, killing three spectators and injuring hundreds more.

This past April 15, the now-Sarver resident was teaching her second-grade class at Buffalo Elementary School in the Freeport Area School District.

“I can’t really talk to my kids about that stuff because they’re so young – we don’t even talk about September 11th that much unless a child brings it up,” Kemp said. “A couple of my friends said ‘We’re thinking about you’ and ‘So glad that you were fast.’”

Kemp, 27, has not been able to watch much of the media coverage this week during the year anniversary of the Boston Marathon bombings April 15, 2013 due to her volunteering with the Freeport Area cross-country and track student-athletes.

“I’m sure once I get there, I’ll be a little bit more emotional. I wasn’t really down there to experience a lot of (last year’s chaos) like some people were, luckily, but of course, I was thinking about it a lot (Tuesday),” Kemp said.

Boyfriend Talan Conjack is also returning with Kemp, but is also not worried about a second attack. Last year, he rode a bicycle along the course – and even briefly ran beside Kemp in the race – but they wondered if he is allowed to this year.

She already knows that no backpacks, costumes or water bottles are allowed.

Kemp registered for the marathon in September, when Freeport Area was to have a week off for Easter vacation. Now she has to utilize some personal days to go for her personal best. (She ran the Scranton, Pa “Steamtown Marathon in three hours, three minutes in October.)

And she registered without any doubt in her mind.

“I think the bombings actually brought more attention to it and more people wanted to run it,” Kemp said. “That’s just how runners are – I feel like the bombings didn’t scare anyone away. People were asking me ‘Are you scared to run?’ and I said ‘No, absolutely not.’

“Runners never back down.”

Kemp also ran in the Virginia Beach “Shamrock Marathon” last month while two Freeport friends tried to qualify for next year’s Boston Marathon. Kemp qualified when she finished the 26.2-mile run in less than three hours, 25 minutes last April.

Monday will be Kemp’s second Boston Marathon, who has been running since she was a 17-year-old student at Kittanning Senior High.

April 21 is also “Patriots’ Day” in Boston

The couple leaves Armstrong County Saturday. She runs in the first wave at 10AM Monday – just like she did last year.

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