How long were you in the Middle East for?

I was in the Middle East for 9 months.

When did you come home?

I deployed Oct 2007, and came home in late June 2008.

What was the experience like?

I was in several countries over there but the most rewarding mission that I was involved in was training Iraqi Marines to defend their Oil Platforms (the Platforms are probably the biggest asset the country has to get their economy back on it’s feet and that makes them a prime target for suicide bombers…they have been attacked before).  We also played a part in the VBSS (visit, board search and seizure) of Iraqi (and other country I cannot say…) fishing boats (dhows) for weapons, smuggled oil, drugs, people (held against their will, or known terrorists) etc.  I felt like I was making a difference for the future of Iraq training the Iraqis and that is why I liked that mission so much.  The experience was once in a life time (well, maybe two if I go again…haha) and it made me realize how lucky we are to live in the country that we do…after seeing how some people live and what their day to day life is like there was no doubt that we live in the greatest country in the world.

Where are you originally from?

I grew up In Beverly.

Where did you go to high school/college?

I moved to Topsfield when I started high school (Bishop Fenwick) and played football there.  After that I went to North Shore Community College and received an Associates in Business and after that went to Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston for a Bachelors Degree in Engineering.

Are you married/engaged?

I am single (I have my eye out though…haha!)

Do you have any children?

I’ve never been married and I don’t have any kids.

What do you like to do in your free time?

In my free time I’m at the gym (the former Gold’s) or over at Cross Fit in Beverly (Dave should pay me for that free advertisement…lol) or swimming a the Danvers YMCA.  My passion is surfing and contrary to popular belief in this area we do actually have surfable waves here.  I surf through the winter, that’s when the good waves show up and have traveled to Hawaii and Costa Rica on surf trips…I also have a brother in California and I surf when I visit him.

How long have you been running?

I was never a big runner, meaning I wouldn’t just go for a run but playing sports I had to run.  It wasn’t until I joined the military that started running on a regular basis.  I like it and I really like the Danvers 5k because not only do I get some exercise in but also a chance to meet some great people.

Chris has been with us since April 24 of this year, and believe it or not this was his first run.  He came in first place with a time of 20:28.  The next week he followed that withfirst again setting a new PR with a time of 20:00.  Pretty good for your first run, literally – his first ever!  He has always been pretty competitive, which is why when a friend of his, Mike, suggested running he jumped on it.  He went on-line, checked out coolrunning.com and found us.  He also did a great job in his first official race (The Hornet Hustle 5K in Reading) on June 1st placing 3rd in his division, and 9th all around.  Looks like hes a natural!  Chris played for the Eagle Tribune district for hockey #5, football #25, and baseball #15 all throughout school at North Reading High, senior year he was the captain of all three teams.  Ya, Id say that’s pretty competitive!  His lucky number is five, which must be why he was drawn to the Danvers 5k.

Chris is pretty laid back and easy to get a long with, or is that just because hes “done talking”?  In his free time he likes to catch an episode of Lost.  His favorite movies are The Gladiator and The 40-yr-old Virgin.  His favorite band would be Lincoln Park.  He has plenty of pet peeves, but none that he will confess to!   

Chris received his masters degree for accountancy from Bentley College in the summer of 2006.  He’s now been the accounting manager at Expediters International for the past year and a 1/2. 

You can catch Chris at his next run at the Danvers Family Festival on Friday, June 27, 5:30 – Kiwanis 5 Mile

http://www.danversfamilyfestival.com/events/roadrace.htm

Dawn Allinder d_allinder@yahoo.com

Jay Molloy joined our run on May 21st 2008, he blew the group away with a time of 19:49 and placing second.  This week still pretty speedy he came in fourth with a time of 20:02. 

Jay is originally from Boston, now residing in Boxford with his wife of fourteen years.  Here’s a sweet story, they meet while he was 3 days in on a deployment with the Marines in Aruba, she just happened to be there on vacation.  Imagine, she goes on a trip and finds the love of her life!  They made such an impression on each other they wrote for fourth months until he returned home.  They are now happily married with three children, two sons 10 and 7 and one daughter who is 9.   

Jay has been actively running for 14 years, however he also tries to squeeze in some hockey and lacrosse time.  He has played hockey for 37 years and lacrosse for 16 of the last 31 years. 

To make a living he is a partner at the law firm Edwards, Angell, Palmer, and Dodge, which is located in Boston.  He deals primarily with hedge funds and according to Jay, “a hedge fund is an unregulated entity (unlike a mutual fund which is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission), in which investors pool their capital so that a third party adviser to the entity can make investment decisions collectively on behalf of the pool.”   

We are glad to have you, keep up the good work! 

Dawn Allinder d_allinder@yahoo.com

Jarred has been running with us since March 12th of this year. He has been an active runner for the past couple of years, however I believe his real passion is softball. He plays a game just about every night of the week from now until October. And he doesn’t just play for one team but for three, Peabody, Lynn, and the traveling team. Wow! Jarred also set a new PR for himself this week coming in fourth with a time of 20:06.

Jarred has a love for all foods, listening to him and his uncle talking about chicken, broccoli, and ziti would make anyone want to run out to the 99. He’s pretty easy going with music, as long as it isn’t country. Ok Jarred, we know that you love Shania Twain! We are glad to have him as one of our regulars in the group, hopefully you stick around for a bit!

Dawn Allinder d_allinder@yahoo.com