Justin and Kiki Fossbender, father and daughter, have both been running since childhood. Justin, who had a father who was a runner, followed in his footsteps and was a competitive runner throughout his youth. For Kiki, running has also been a big part of her life. In Middle School, she joined Girls on the Run and continued to compete in Track and Field throughout high school. Their enthusiasm for running was, and is, a passion that they share.
When they learned about the opportunity to run the ASICS Falmouth Road Race with the Joe Andruzzi Foundation (Team JAF), they saw it as a chance to combine their love of running with a cause that had become deeply personal.
Justin’s partner and Kiki’s stepmother, Liz, was diagnosed with metastatic neuroendocrine cancer about 4 and a half years ago. During her cancer battle, Justin and Kiki experienced firsthand the challenges that patients and caregivers face every day. While their family was fortunate to have a strong support system, they knew not everyone had that same advantage.
They saw how overwhelming a cancer diagnosis can be beyond just the treatment. This drew them to the Joe Andruzzi Foundation and its mission.
“For people that might not have a support system, JAF can fill that void and help people focus on their treatment and their loved ones instead of worrying about grocery bills and electric bills and how to get to treatment,” Justin said.
Unfortunately, Liz passed away this past February after her battle with cancer. Known for her compassion and strength, Liz left a lasting impact on everyone around her.
“Liz was my stepmom, and her spirit was LiveLikeLiz, show up for people. You know if you want a village, you have to be a villager, and she continued to show up for all her friends throughout her entire life. I think showing up for people and being a villager is something that I want to live for moving forward and carry on for her,” Kiki shared.
When Justin and Kiki decided to run for Team JAF in honor of Liz, they thought it would be just the two of them. After connecting with her networks, others got excited and now there are 11 individuals on the LiveLikeLiz team.
“It was supposed to be just me and my dad at first, and then I asked some of my teammates and my friends at school. I said, ‘Hey guys, do you want to run seven miles?’ And at first, they were kind of like, oh yeah, sure, we’ll do it. And then they really hopped on board, and that just shows my village. Some of them had never met Liz, and others came in contact with her just a few times. Their willingness to show up for me and to show up for Liz is something really important to me.”
Justin was first introduced to JAF through his company, Blueprint Medicines, and had the opportunity to attend one of the Foundation’s events. After seeing the passion behind JAF’s mission firsthand, he knew he wanted to become involved.
“It was really just the passion that I saw Joe and the team delivering to create awareness and resources. Obviously, being a Patriots fan, and then also our own experiences being caregivers, kind of just made it a good choice for us to be able to try to support.”
This upcoming race will serve as one of the first major milestones for their family since losing Liz in February. They will have their village there to run with them, cheer them on, and once they cross that finish line, they will help celebrate Liz and who she was!
“We’re running in memory of Liz. We’re running for JAF to create awareness and raise some money. We’re running for our village, the people that have come to support us, and we’re running for ourselves. You know, for us that lost somebody who we love so much, this run will be a milestone, a chance for us to support what she was able to do and who she was, and to carry on her legacy and memory,” Justin said.
Team LiveLikeLiz has already exceeded their fundraising goal. The team is geared up and ready to get out there, run for a great cause, and overcome the big hill at the end of the race in Falmouth Heights.
Justin told us, “I built a playlist that starts out a little grounded, which helps me to start a little slower, and then it builds up. I’ve got some uplifting songs in the middle, and then they turn to rage a little bit at the end, just to help me kind of get through those last kind of five to six and a half miles, and then my last song is “Sweet Child of Mine” by Guns N’ Roses, because there’s a lyric in there that talks about having piercing blue eyes like Liz’s that will help me get over that hill.”
We are so grateful to have Justin and Kiki and their entire group supporting the Joe Andruzzi Foundation. Hearing about how incredible Liz was reminds us at JAF why we do what we do: provide help, hope and a reason to smile for cancer patients and their families.
Two of Liz’s coworkers, April and Caryn, wrote a wonderful poem dedicated to Liz and her memory. Click this link to read!