Down a scenic route and up a hilly trail, 35 students, teachers, and parents pushed through seven miles or more in honor of history teacher John Near.

One person, Aadithya Prakash (12), participated in the entire 26-mile Golden Gate Marathon, while others did the shorter 13 or seven mile routes. However, all of them ran for a common cause: to honor the former teacher and to raise money for the John Near Endowment Fund.

The marathon took place in Marin Headlands. Arthi Padmanabhan (12) and Aadithya decided to organize this event. They started planning from last fall to find students who wanted to participate and start training.

“I had Mr. Near last year, and he was by far the best history teacher I ever had, probably the best teacher I ever had… we wanted to do something to help [him] be remembered,” Aadithya said.

The organizing did not prove to be difficult for the two students because many of their classmates were willing to be involved.

Students used various training techniques to prepare. Arjun Mody (12) is used to running long distances and did not specifically prepare for his half-marathon run in Sausalito.
“I run four miles to five miles about four times a week usually, and I did not really change that [before] the marathon. But I was really sore for two days afterwards, so I definitely should have trained more,” he said.

Aadithya, on the other hand, was the only student who took part in the full-length marathon, and had to train rigorously. “In the months leading up to it, I had to starve myself at times… I pushed myself really hard,” he said

Radhika Padmanabhan, Arthi’s mother, ran the seven-mile race in Sausalito alongside her daughter. She believes that she was immensely affected by her experience.
“The event has motivated me in several ways: I feel very energized and feel like I can do anything I set my mind on… I would like to take part in organizing and helping with this cause in case Harker students choose to continue this event in the future,” Padmanabhan said.

Padmanabhan was not the only parent who ran. Madhu Jain, Nalini Jain’s (12) mother, Sue Datta, Samir Datta’s (12) mother, and Padma Prakash, Aadithya’s mother all ran as well.
Pam Dickinson, Communications Director and Near’s wife, believes that he would have been deeply moved by the marathon.

“He was a very kind man and would have been very touched by the love and caring that this event represented,” Dickinson said.
Alumnus Casey Near (’06), John Near’s daughter, attended the event with her mother.

“I think this group of Harker kids is the epitome of the community my dad loved so much. He taught for over thirty years, and I’ve been accustomed to meeting alums in their 40s who talk about my dad’s influence on them. It’s always incredible to see people in their teens, who had my dad in his last few years, who were able to share in that same experience. But, of course, this run was about far more than my dad – and he would have been the first to point that out. It was about rallying together, devoting yourself to a cause, and making it happen – all with a smile on your face. Couldn’t get more ‘Harker’ than that, ” she said.

History teacher Julie Wheeler participates in marathons frequently and also ran the seven-mile length on April 3. She took part in it to help support the students.
“It was a really hard course. The first two miles were killer and in the end you [finish] on sand, which was brutal. [The students] really need to be commended for their efforts.”
Even though the marathon proved to be strenuous, students were glad that they ran.

“It was really fun even though it was kind of difficult. I would do it again; I would do it a million times. I never thought [to stop],” Manasa Reddy (12) said.

Casey trusts that her father would have acknowledged not only the rigor of the course, but the overall camaraderie that was exhibited by the students.
“My dad would have been so incredibly proud…. He probably also would have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of support and intense dedication. He really would have had tears in his eyes when he saw everybody cross the finish line – like my mom and I did!” she said.

For the marathon, each participant tried to raise money through pledges to donate to the John Near Endowment Fund. Aadithya alone raised 3,500 dollars., which will soon be added to the current gift and pledge total of $316,008 in the John Near Endowment Fund.

“I just reached out to everyone I knew [for pledges] because they all knew [that] I am a hard core runner, and I would finish [the marathon] and it was for a great cause,” he said.
Through all of the training, sweating, and perseverance, the participants believe that Near would have been thankful and proud.

Aadithya said, “the fact that I was able [to finish the marathon] shows how much the work I put into it actually paid off; [I] could correlate [it] to anything in my life. I think Mr. Near was trying to teach us that last year – how hard work and passion can get you anywhere, and I think the marathon is good proof of that.”