Hey, you! 

I run for Jim because no other person has inspired me the way he has. 

I was named Marquette's first-ever James Foley Scholar back in 2015, and I consider it one of the most influential moments of my life. You know those moments that, later in life, you trace everything back to? This is mine. 

Though I never met Jim or knew him personally, I have always felt close to him. He makes me braver, more driven, and friendlier. Funnier. More easy-going yet more focused at the same time. It's hard to articulate. When I received the scholarship, Jim was intimidating to me: I thought I was expected to be just like him, to show up on campus and be him. So, I chose journalism as my major and carried this weight on my shoulders. 

But after meeting Tom Durkin, the Foley family, and hearing more and more of his friends tell his story, the weight on my shoulders felt less like pressure and more like comfort, support.  That's when I changed my major to English and traveled abroad to Cape Town, South Africa. I lived the life at Marquette that I wanted to live, full of moral courage, because I finally realized that this was what Jim would've wanted from me. 

Since losing my older brother, Joey, I've only felt closer to my scholarship namesake and his family and friends. Grief sucks, but having a community of people who are there to lift you up really helps. Shoutout to Tom Durkin, whom I'm proud to call a friend, and to Mrs. Foley, who's not only comforted me after the loss of my brother, but, especially, my own mother, too. (She's a hero to us both). 

All of this? Has made all the difference. And that's why #IRunForJim

Thanks for donating to my team!

---- Jacob

(Hear more of my story here).