2026 Team Resilience

Erika’s Lighthouse is a non-profit organization that believes that every student should have the knowledge and tools they need to care for their mental health. We’re proud to provide our high-quality, comprehensive depression education and suicide prevention curriculum to school districts across the country, at zero cost. Every student. Every classroom. Every school.

My connection to this organization began long before this marathon. I volunteered with Erika’s Lighthouse in high school, and that experience planted the seed for the work I would go on to do as an adult. For nearly a decade, I’ve worked as a mental health provider, always serving youth and families and spending much of my career in school settings. I’ve seen firsthand how early intervention, honest and supportive conversations, and access to mental health care and education can truly change, and protect, young lives.

This run is also personal. Over the past year, running has become an important way in which I care for my own mental health. It’s been a source of grounding, resilience, and hope, and has helped me to build grit in ways I never expected. Before this past year, I hadn’t picked up running shoes in almost a decade. I used to say, “I could never run a half marathon,” and then I ran 3 in 6 months. Then I said, “I’ll never do a full marathon, I can't do that.” And now, here I am, proving myself wrong once again (in the best way). Training has reminded me that healing isn’t easy or linear, but that showing up, step by step, mile by mile, matters and makes a difference.

I’m fundraising $3,000 (alongside my 2 friends) to help Erika’s Lighthouse continue expanding mental health education and support in schools. Every dollar raised helps reach more students, equip educators, and create spaces where young people feel safe talking about their mental health.

By supporting my run, you’re not just helping me reach the start line in Chicago, you’re helping ensure that more young people feel seen, supported, and empowered to ask for help. You are helping to connect youth to the care that they need and deserve. Thank you for believing in this cause, in this journey, in me, and in the power of showing up for one another. Every mile, and every donation, matters. xo

Grace Jones

Support My Fundraising Efforts

My Supporters

$3,210.33

achieved

$3,000.00

goal

of your goal reached

My Badges

Grace Jones

Support My Fundraising Efforts

My Supporters

$3,210.33

achieved

$3,000.00

goal

of your goal reached

My Badges

Team Fundraising Leader

$500+ Raised

Reach 10 Donors

25% of Goal

$1k+ Raised

Reach 20 Donors

50% of Goal

75% of Goal

Most Donors

Reach 30 Donors

$2.5k+ Raised

Fundraising Achieved

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