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Carmena Pyfrom loves lauding the Lord for her ample blessings, which include a 38-year marriage, two children and six grandchildren. Considering most occasions chances to chat with her creator, the 62-year-old will offer seven hours of praise Sunday as a Gore-Tex Philadelphia Marathon walker. Set to make her sixth excursion, she will blend her gratitude with intense self-belief to inspire others to ask more of themselves when pondering their abilities.
“Scientists say we use only a tiny part of our brains, and I think that’s true of our overall lives, too,” the resident of the 1900 block of South 22nd Street said of seeing her participation as a boredom-busting boon. “I value having these opportunities to get out of my comfort zone.”
The West Passyunk inhabitant has missed only one marathon since her 2007 debut with PhillyFit, now USA Fit/Philly. Electing for the half-marathon version for her inaugural attempt and the full experience the subsequent times, she has marked this year with novelty, as she prepped for her course work with Purpose-Driven Walkers, a group she founded in May.
“Even if someone does not plan to go through with ever doing a marathon, I recommend submitting yourself to the training process,” Pyfrom said. “It goes a long way toward ridding yourself of limits. I started when I was 56 and find it incredibly and exceptionally spiritual.”
As she covers the scenic and landmark-heavy route, the religious figure, who builds her faith as an adjunct chaplain at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and an instructor within the Redeemer Institute for Christian Education at The Church of the Redeemer Baptist, 1440 S. 24th St., hatches numerous thoughts, all centering on how much providence has helped her. With so many entrants obsessing over winning the event or setting personal bests, she chooses to be thankful for another considerable stretch to prove her tenacity.
“I’m in it to complete it,” Pyfrom, who trains at FDR Park, Broad Street and Pattison Avenue, said. “I walk for the satisfaction of getting it done.”
Graced with great supporters, including her husband Richardo, the ebullient individual sees the marathon as a perennial provider of proof that she must stick with her “Let’s break the rules” mantra with regards to accepting decline as an element of aging.
“I let God do His work because He’s not bound by anything, certainly not by my infirmities,” Pyfrom, who is studying for her Doctor of Ministry through the Glenside-situated Westminster Theological Seminary, said. “The journey is amazing and so educational.”
Eager to travel to Ireland for a chance to ambulate across the Emerald Isle’s choice spots, Pyfrom will deem that probable August trek another opportunity to opine that shutting off one’s options steals the soul’s vibrancy.
“The Bible asks ‘Do you really want to be made whole?’” she said. “I do and the marathon is a huge help.”
While the 26.2-mile adventure has given Pyfrom mental boosts, it has allowed Gaeten Dominic to sustain his physical vigor. Ready for his 18th effort, the resident of the 3100 block of South 18th Street has long revered the event’s capacity for fostering personal as well as communal growth.
“I would never say it’s easy,” the 55-year-old Packer Park denizen said. “It beats you up, but the pain is self-inflicted, so because of that quality, I think it’s all doable.”
Well-acquainted with compression sleeves, elastic bandages, heating pads and ice packs, the dedicated galloper will always prefer them to the medicine he ingested to counter an illness 17 years ago. When the malady robbed him of more than six months of work, Dominic, now a nurse assisting mainly with orthopedic surgeries at Pennsylvania Hospital, needed a rejuvenating activity to restore his strength, with walking becoming his initial choice after significant weight loss left him minus the power to try anything else.
“I went from a walk to a trot to a jog to a run to an obsession,” the medical professional said of his pursuit.
That attraction has led Dominic to use his feet to convey him to his place of employment regularly, with the allure of running’s autonomy-increasing aspects too tempting to quell.
“It does provide a sense of freedom and fulfillment,” the fixated figure, who in ’01 nearly qualified for the Boston Marathon by registering a 3:32 finish, said. “The marathon is one of my most favorite runs and is already on my schedule for next year.”
Dominic, whose training sessions include jaunts along South Ninth Street, also dots his calendar with triathlons and events to show support for lung cancer research. Having evolved from a competitor who had gaining entrance into the prestigious Massachusetts spring run as a huge motivator into a fervent admirer of his chance to add to the running community’s camaraderie, he looks forward to completing the course minus the pressure of meeting a specified time designation.
“I’ve begun to taper my runs so that the day before, I’ll just do a mile and get ready mentally,” Dominic said.
The family man, whose 29-year marriage to Michele has endowed him with substantial backing from his mate and daughters Courtney and Noelle, soon-to-be graduates from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and Widener University, respectively, to whom he is dedicating this year’s performance, loves having devoted nearly two decades of his physical and mental maturation to the marathon. Though the years have brought challenges, he finds himself as excited now as he was when he first called on his feet to teach him diligence.
“It’s become an amazing event with so many spectators, volunteers and runners,” Dominic said. “I’m appreciative for each chance to get out there.”
Visit philadelphiamarathon.com.
Contact Managing Editor Joseph Myers at jmyers@southphillyreview.com or ext. 124.
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