For Sarah Short, family has always been an important part of her life. Having always been an athletic person, Sarah has decided to take on her first marathon, the Marine Corps Marathon, this October to honor her maternal grandmother, Marie Mills, and paternal grandfather, Paul Pruschki, Sr., who have both sadly passed from pancreatic cancer.
Sarah will be running the Marine Corps Marathon alongside her cousin, turning grief into a purpose, raising funds and spreading awareness for pancreatic cancer and research.
Each run reminds Sarah of her grandparent’s strength and love, carrying them with Sarah each mile of the journey.
Spending Time Together
Finding out about her grandmother’s diagnosis was pretty hard for Sarah; the woman she lovingly called Nonnie was one of the most important people in her life. Sarah describes her as always being present, always being a constant source of love and support.
“Running a marathon is hard, but what these people go through is significantly harder. She is one of the most intensely strong people that I’ve ever known. She didn’t let the diagnosis, the pain, none of it faze her or outwardly anyway. She was going through all of that, but she was so strong.”
At the time of her Nonnie’s diagnosis, Sarah’s daughter and nephew were two years old. “No matter how uncomfortable she was feeling, whenever the younger kids were around, she would sit up taller and speak stronger and just not let them see the struggles she was facing.”
Growing up, Sarah remembers her grandmother’s house as the focal point, having a swimming pool and a closed-in back porch where everyone would hang out in the summer.
“The summers as a child with my cousins and being at her house is one of the fondest times of my life,” Sarah shared. “We’re all really close, and family was always important for my grandparents, and that’s a value we still uphold.”
“As I got older, I would clean her house every other week, so I would go over, and oftentimes it turned into her saying, ‘Don’t clean today. Why don’t you just hang out?’ and we would just chit-chat and spend time together. I wish I could do that again.”
Carrying a Name, Carrying A Legacy
Sarah’s grandfather was diagnosed with advanced pancreatic cancer in June of 2012, and he passed away a few months later. While they had few opportunities to meet, Sarah still considers her grandfather’s values to be a major part of who she is.
“I didn’t have a close relationship with my grandfather, having only met him a handful of times, but a lot of his values were passed on to me through my father,” Sarah said.
“There was always pride in our family and who we are as ‘Pruschkis,’ with no doubt that we could achieve anything we set our minds to. Because of that legacy, I haven’t for a single second considered that I couldn’t do this race. I know I’ll achieve this goal because I’m a Pruschki.”
Impactful Moments
Sarah’s grandmother was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2022, after experiencing abdominal pain, sending her into the ER.
When Sarah first heard about her Nonnie’s symptoms and testing, she remembers being naive in a way.
“I was like, it’s probably something simple; she doesn’t have cancer, that’s ridiculous. Why would she have cancer? And then she got the diagnosis, and I was like, well, you’re just going to fight it,” Sarah said. “I think I had wool over my eyes a little bit in the beginning, and then she started to decline.”
After having done some imaging and scans, the doctors discovered a tumor on Sarah’s grandmother’s liver and pancreas. Sarah’s grandmother had done some radiation and chemo treatment before sadly passing away in 2023, only about a year after her diagnosis.
“It was fast and slow all at the same time where you don’t realize it in the moment that it’s the last Christmas, last Thanksgiving, all of those things, and then all of a sudden we were at the end, and it’s like, you knew it was coming but at the same time you’re shocked that it’s here.” Sarah shared.
Sarah’s grandmother had moved in with Sarah’s mom, receiving hospice care before passing. “When she was sick, one of the moments that I remember most was when she was in bed, and my mom was lying next to her, and I was lying next to her, and my daughter was lying with me,” Sarah said.
“I thought, I’ll never forget this moment. It’s all of the generations together, and we were just lying there talking about everything and nothing all at once, and it meant a lot to be able to share that with my own daughter.”
Sarah recalls going to her mom’s house every day, where her grandmother was, to spend time with her grandmother and help her mom as much as she could. “Every day we would say goodbye, I love you. It was heartbreaking not knowing if that was the last time that I would get to say goodbye to her.”
Taking on A Marathon
Sarah comes from a very athletic family, with her parents being very into fitness. “My sister and I used to play in the sand pit at the track while my mom was running laps so she could get her workout in”.
Growing up, Sarah rode horses competitively, was on the swim team in high school and college, and in college started her running journey by getting into triathlons.
“I was looking for that next thing to try and thought, ‘Oh, a half-marathon sounds like fun!’” Sarah said. “Most people wouldn’t agree, but I tried that out, and the rest is history.”
Sarah completed her first half-marathon right out of college and has been running consistently since then for fitness and health, which has helped her train for her first marathon this October, the Marine Corps Marathon.
Sarah’s cousin, Jennifer, will be running with her, which has been a huge encouragement to her training journey, along with her mom and sisters running with her while training.
On race day, Sarah will be joined by her family, cheering her on from the sidelines. “I think I’m most looking forward to seeing everyone and having it be like a mini family reunion, and just experiencing all of the energy and the crowds,” Sarah shared.
“I’ve only ever seen pictures and heard about it, but I think it’ll be really cool to experience and also just being able to feel close to my grandmother; I feel like she’s watching over me for this journey and that’ll be the pinnacle moment of being close to her.”
Running With a Purpose
Sarah’s cousin is the one who helped Sarah decide to run a marathon for a good cause. Having run in the Marine Corps Marathon before, Sarah’s cousin introduced her to Project Purple.
“She sent me the link and said, ‘Look at this nonprofit; it’s one of the partners for the Marine Corps Marathon and is for pancreatic cancer. ‘ Sarah has experience in fundraising, so her cousin thought this would be something for her to look into.
“I love fundraising, and I love running, and this year, the marathon falls on my grandma’s birthday, so it was kind of like all the stars aligned.”
Sarah’s grandma was always one of her biggest supporters and was at one of the local races Sarah had previously run, cheering her on. “She was drinking champagne with us at the end and joining in our joy and celebration, so I know that she would be so excited that I’m not only doing it, but I’m doing it with my cousin.”
Sarah’s family has been incredibly supportive throughout her entire training journey. “I am so fortunate to have my husband and kids who are first to cheer me on for races and every training run, and, my dad is an amazing athlete and is like my own personal coach,” Sarah said.
“He helps me with everything from training to talking me down when I get in my own head about the race. I’m immeasurably blessed to have him and my mom as a resource that I know not everyone has.”
Alongside her family, Sarah has seen an immense amount of support from friends and strangers who are just looking to help a good cause. “The outpouring of support from everybody has been mind-blowing and so amazing.”
“I think it’s a huge testament to my grandparents and the people that they were. They passed a few years ago now, and it’s incredible the outpouring of support I’ve received to honor and remember them.”
Sarah’s Nonnie loved to celebrate everyone’s successes and be a part of everything that she could. “She would be so happy to come over and hang out with me after a long run and relax, or she would’ve driven out and dropped me water bottles and supported me in any way that she could. She would have said, ‘Sarah, you’re crazy, but I love you so much!’ I think she would be very proud.”
On the big day, Sarah is looking forward to feeling the community of everyone honoring and running for one main purpose and is excited to be surrounded by so much support.
“I think it’s easy to feel like you’re alone in your experiences and your grief, and I know that there’s so much loss and so many stories and so many people being honored and remembered, so I think it’ll be really powerful to be surrounded by that. I’m pretty sure I’m going to cry when I cross the finish line.”
“Each training run, there is more of a purpose behind it. It’s not just the goal of completing a marathon; it’s the goal of raising awareness and fighting for all the people who are suffering. Whether they’re experiencing the illness themselves, or they’re supporting someone who is. If I can be a small part of finding a cure and helping others not experience the pain and loss, that’s all that matters.”
If you’d like to run or participate in an event of your own for Project Purple, visit our events page.
