Beloved wife's death inspires Yasir Salem to Run 50 Marathons in 50 States in 50 Weeks

the death of his wife has inspired him to set an ambitious goal, to spread awareness about early detection of lung cancer. Running with a passion, a purpose and reflecting on an emotional past, Yasir Salem has a heavy heart as he prepares for the race. "This year's marathon is going to mean a lot more to me without her," he said. "This marathon means so much to both of us, so me doing that here and her in spirit, it's hard for me to predict what that's going to be like." The woman who was his inspiration, his wife Gwen, died this summer after a battle with lung cancer. She had previously survived a brain tumor, and after that, the couple encouraged each other to enjoy life. "When Gwen got sick in 2008, we set the goal up of running the marathon in 2010," he said. And they did, joining forces to run eight marathons together, including last year's New York City Marathon. "That last bit, we'd make sure to cross the line together," he said. Her death has inspired Yasir to run with a cause, running 50 marathons in 50 states in a year to raise money for early testing of lung cancer.

posted Friday November 23rd