Cancer took their mothers.
Steven Capshaw’s mother, Carol, died of stage 4 glioblastoma, a form of brain cancer, in 2012.
Paul Fitzgerald lost his mom, Sally, when he was a teenager. His father, Bob, is battling cancer now.
Marsha Breiteneicher died four days before Alexis Schneeflock ran the Boston Marathon for the first time in 2010. Her father, Joe, passed away from cancer in 2007.
Schneeflock, of Cummington, will join Northampton’s Fitzgerald and Southampton’s Capshaw in Hopkinton for the 120th Boston Marathon on Monday.
The three Pioneer Valley members of the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge team have never met, but they share a purpose.
“I would suspect everyone has the exact same story that I do: They’ve been touched by cancer and want to do something,” Capshaw said.
The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute was one of the first charity organizations to be recognized by the Boston Athletic Association in 1990, when the marathon challenge began.
Team members commit to raising a minimum of $4,000 if they have time-qualified for the marathon, and $5,000 if they haven’t met the minimum time requirements.
Those who commit to raising the $5,000 receive an invitational entry into the race.
More than 550 people signed up to run for Dana-Farber this year.
Capshaw is representing the organization for the first time.
“I like to do (a race for charity) every year. The last few years I’ve done the Pan-Mass Challenge,” he said. “This year, I wanted to do the marathon challenge instead.”
Capshaw hasn’t run a marathon since the Chicago Marathon more than 20 years ago.
“I was in my 20s, and it was easy. Now I’m 44, it’s not so easy,” he said.
Dana-Farber tries to ease some of that burden.
The organization provides training plans and access to counselors who can provide guidance.
“There’s so much support in terms of explaining how to train, explaining what to do,” said Capshaw, who is the president of Valley Steel Stamping in Greenfield. “I’ve attempted to train as much as I can when you’re 44 and have three kids.”
Capshaw started running when he joined the Army Reserves in college. He didn’t have much of a choice in the matter.
“I probably weighed a couple extra pounds,” he said. “It’s just been fun. It’s something I do, something my wife does. It’s the quickest way to work out and stay in shape.
“I’m by no means an elite runner. I will not be in contention for winning the Boston Marathon.”
But that’s not why he’s doing it.
He’s doing it for Grace Robinson, a 4-year-old daughter of family friends who has battled cancer since she was 2 and is just getting out of two years of treatments.
“She’s recovering from what 20 or 30 years ago would have been a death sentence and now is fully recoverable from what they do at Dana-Farber,” Capshaw said.
Fitzgerald, who is an adjustment counselor at Northampton High School, worked with Dana-Farber as a volunteer at the marathon before entering its running program four years ago for the BAA half marathon.
He was an athlete growing up but never a runner — particularly not a distance runner.
“I’m a charity runner,” Fitzgerald said. “It’s the draw to Dana-Farber, there’s no other reason. Now I’m kind of hooked on the distance running and training. What drew me to it was my connection with Dana-Farber and the opportunity to be involved with fundraising with them.”
There’s a piece of paper with the words “Run for Dana-Farber!” taped to his coffee cup.
His main motivation, though, is those who haven’t been diagnosed yet.
“It’s taken its toll,” Fitzgerald said of cancer in his life. “Originally when I got involved with Dana-Farber it was to create some sort of emotional connection and support for a cure. But now who I run for is the people that haven’t been diagnosed yet that are going to be.”
Even though he doesn’t consider himself a runner, Fitzgerald isn’t daunted by the training miles. It’s the numbers on the fundraising sheet that trouble him more often.
“You feel like you’re being an imposition on people,” he said. “They guide you to tell people you want to offer them the opportunity to donate, make it sound like you’re offering them an opportunity, but it’s still somewhat challenging. You’ve got to canvass business and all your friends, and you worry that people are getting sick of you asking for money.”
Fitzgerald hadn’t reached his mark as of Tuesday but expected a fundraiser in Boston before the marathon would help put him over the threshold.
Then he’ll be able to don his signature pink, blue and orange singlet adorned with names of those who have fought cancer and inspirational phrases. He wore it last year when he ran his second Boston Marathon. His mother’s name is the biggest in pink.
For his third Boston Marathon this year, Fitzgerald is looking forward to mile 25 and the contingent of Dana-Farber supporters that gathers there — patients, survivors and family members urging runners so close to the finish.
“I had to learn the hard way that it’s hard to keep running when you’re hyperventilating from crying,” Fitzgerald said. “It’s going to be an emotional experience for me but a positive run. It’s hard not to be. It’s the whole reason I’m running.”
It’s the same for Schneeflock.
She started running in 2007 when her dad was first diagnosed with cancer.
“It gives me time away from everything else,” she said. “I tend to only run outside. I don’t listen to music. It’s like an hour or many hours of clear headspace time.”
One of her father’s work colleagues suggested she run for Dana-Farber, and she did in 2010.
“It was an emotional connection to me around cancer,” Schneeflock said.
Schneeflock, who is the development director of Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture in South Deerfield, will run the Boston Marathon for a third time Monday.
It’s her fifth marathon overall. She has run the Marine Corps Marathon and the Pittsburgh Marathon also.
Schneeflock hasn’t run a marathon since her 1½-year-old twins were born.
“This will be my first marathon after having the kids. It’s been a push for me to get back into running shape, but Dana-Farber’s the only charity team that I’ve ever run for,” she said. “Raising money for Dana-Farber is important for me because I think the work that they do is something that needs to be done.”
Kyle Grabowski can be reached at kgrabowski@gazettenet.com.