Running for Those in Need ~ Nancy Packovski
We are very fortunate to see many of the same people at Hometown Happenings events. But, you may not always know everyone’s name. In doing these “Runner Profiles”, our hope is to start building a community. Imagine being able to go up to someone you don’t know and saying, “Hey, I read about how you are collecting donations for WorldVision. How is that going? Can I still donate?” We also hope that the stories you share will inspire other people along their journeys as well. So, with that in mind, meet Nancy Packovski. She is one of our Hometown Happenings Heroes & has already run 4 of our events in 2019. Here is her story:
Why did you start running? Throughout my whole life, I’ve enjoyed being active, but running was something I never thought I was really good at. As an adult, I started signing up for local 5Ks randomly and just for fun. After starting to set and achieve some goals, it has turned into something that I look forward to doing regularly.
How did you get started? Many years ago, a couple of friends and I signed up to walk in Valpo’s Popcorn Panic together, and I loved the atmosphere of being out there with so many other like-minded people. Years after that experience, I challenged myself to complete one 5K per month for a whole year, which has spiraled into consecutive years, which has spiraled into multiple races per month. Now it’s just something that’s always on my radar – trying to get better one race after the other.
What is your favorite Hometown Happenings event? My favorite Hometown Happenings event has to be 
the St. Patrick’s Day One Miler. Running the parade route with so many people lining the street is super exciting and pushes me to run harder each time I’ve participated.
What goal do you still want to accomplish with your running? After pushing all of the doubts out of my mind and giving it much thought, I recently signed up to run the Chicago Marathon this October – with a lot of encouragement from one particular friend. J Being able to cross that finish line is my main goal right now. Going from the girl who couldn’t run all 3 miles in a 5k, to struggling to complete one under 30 minutes, to never expecting to run all 13 miles of the Indy Mini, to now training for the Chicago Marathon has been a pretty unbelievable road for me to travel.
What are your interests/activities outside of running? Outside of running, I enjoy taking boxing classes at UFC Gym in Merrillville, going to yoga, and of course spending time with my family and friends. Being able to travel and see so many different parts of our world is also something I really enjoy!
What is your best advice for someone getting started? The best advice I would give to someone who is just getting started would be “just get out there”. Set small goals that you can accomplish and keep building upon them. Before you know it, you’ll look back at how far you’ve come and be so proud of yourself. Running is one of those sports where you truly only compete with yourself – nobody else. That’s the beauty of it.
You are running the Chicago Marathon for World Vision. What do they do and how did you choose them? World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization that serves all people and helps children, families, and communities in need to overcome poverty through donations. It delivers more clean water than any other nongovernmental organization in the world.
I chose to represent and fundraise for World Vision because I knew there was a local team already established, and once I learned more about it, I definitely knew this was something I could proudly stand behind. It makes me feel good to know that my efforts through running can benefit people out there who are less fortunate and those donations will help to provide basic human rights – striving to lift people and communities out of poverty. Here is the link to my WorldVision page if you would like to help: Nancy’s WorldVision Donation Page