Brad Johnson and Emily Levan
If you think running the entire length of Vermont in less than a week is daunting, try doing it with Type I Diabetes. That’s what 47-year-old Brad Johnson and his wife Emily Levan are planning to do next month.
“It was completely Emily’s idea,” Brad said. “She was going to do it by herself, but I decided at some point that it would be fun for me. You run enough miles, you can get to a point where it’s reasonable that you can cover that distance.”
A Type I Diabetic for close to 25 years, Brad enjoys the outdoors. He’s a logger based in Northfield, working and playing outside more than 300 days a year with an insulin pump and Continuous Glucose Monitor.
“They are a truly life-changing technology for active diabetics like me,” Brad said. “I’m amazed I can do any of this stuff and that’s the message I want to convey to other people.”
Brad also attributes his health and success to the years of care he’s received from the team at the Kingwood Health Center in Randolph, part of Gifford Health Care.
“The care I receive from those at the Diabetes Clinic is, in a word, outstanding,” Brad said. “They’re just tireless in their energy and their advocacy.”
“In healthcare today, it’s hard to get such individualized and personalized service, where you can actually talk to a human and that human knows you,” Emily said. “And I think a place like Gifford is the type of place where you can get that kind of care and that goes a long way particularly for people like Brad and me.”
Which is the reason Brad Johnson and Emily Levan will be going a long way for Gifford. They’ll be running 210 miles of VT Route 100, to raise money for the Diabetes Clinic. Their hope is the contributions of others will help fund access to the same medical equipment that is enabling Brad to take on such a challenge as this.
“Diabetes is expensive at best and prohibitive at worst when it comes to getting on a pump, accessing the supplies and support you need to make it work, and finding health care professionals who meet your needs,” Brad said.
“Thinking about giving back to a place very local, that we have a connection with, seemed to be a very natural choice,” Emily said.
Since 2007, the Diabetes Clinic has provided diabetics like Brad Johnson a number of services including nutrition education, exercise counseling, medication and blood glucose monitoring.
Gifford’s Diabetes Clinic Team: diabetes educator Jennifer Stratton, nurse Chelsea Otis, and family nurse practitioner Katie John
“We love the relationship that we build with patients,” Diabetes educator Jennifer Stratton said. “It’s an honor to get to know them and be a part of their lives. We have a team in our office, but our patients are the center of that team.”
The team of Brad and Emily hope to cover the distance in six days, running more than 35 miles a day. They plan to start at the Massachusetts border on June 10th and plan to finish at the Canadian border. They will stay in motels at night and carry food and clothes. Of course, Brad will also be carrying his insulin pump and CGC.
“We hope that this kind of activity inspires other folks, diabetics or not, to be active and pursue what makes them happy, whatever form that takes,” Brad says.
Thanks to Kingwood, Brad Johnson has never had to run from his Type I Diabetes. But for a week in mid-June, he’s choosing to run so other diabetics can afford to follow his path.
Brad’s Running Partner is a Wringer
When Brad Johnson takes to VT Route 100 next month, he’ll have some very experienced company running alongside to motivate him. Brad’s wife, Emily Levan, finished as the first American woman in the Boston Marathon two years in a row. She competed in the U.S. Olympic Trials for the marathon also holds a course record for women at the VT 100K.
“She is not one to boast about what she does,” Brad said. “But it has been inspirational to those of us who have watched her over the years.”
Emily previously worked in Gifford primary care in Bethel. Two summers ago, Brad and Emily ran the Long Trail in less than 10 days.
A Track Record of Fundraising
Brad and Emily’s daughter, Maddie, was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in 2008. She received treatment at the Children’s Cancer Program at Maine Medical Center.
“It was largely Emily and Maddie’s endeavor, named Two Trials,” Brad said. “As Maddie was fighting cancer and Emily was training to compete at the US Olympic Trials for the marathon.”
Through a website and traditional media outreach, more than $75,000 was raised in just over 3 months, all of which went to support the Children’s Cancer Program.
“We felt it was a way to give back to others,” Emily said. “I think there’s a way you can use these endeavors to help others and inspire others and show others what is a possibility.”
To support Gifford’s Diabetes Clinic in honor of Brad and Emily, visit our donate page.
