Wednesday morning, March 30, Emerson Elementary staff and students staged a surprise assembly to congratulate Principal Mark Timmerman on qualifying for the Boston Marathon April 18. Mr. Timmerman, a committed runner, has completed six marathons previously and qualified for Boston with a time of 3:04.40 at the Des Moines Marathon in October.
Stacy Evans helped the students appreciate just how far 26.2 miles is and offered a little history on the origin of the marathon. A large majority of students thought they would like to make 196.5 laps around the Emerson halls, but much fewer thought they would look as happy as Mr. Timmerman did at the half-way point of the Des Moines Marathon!
Mrs. Evans and Mr. Timmerman spoke with the students about the hard work and preparation a marathon takes, comparing it to doing their best at school. Mr. Timmerman said he was motivated to qualify for the Boston Marathon because he wanted to prove to himself that he could set a goal and do it, and he wanted to experience what Boston has to offer culturally and remember the people who went through a tragedy there. Mr. Timmerman left all of the students and adults in the room with a powerful message: “We have more potential than we give ourselves credit for. We can do more than we think we can!”
The staff presented Mr. Timmerman with a pair of shoes and a hat, and they will be supporting his run back in Iowa, tracking his progress in the televised race.
Congratulations, Mr. Timmerman, and Emerson Elementary!