TRUST THE PROCESS!
I signed up for this race nine months ago after watching my brother complete his first full Ironman, and what a journey it turned into.
Five months of training. A brutal New York winter. A bike crash. A couple of illnesses. A few injury setbacks. Through it all, I made it to the finish line of my first race.
I needed this challenge. A way to push myself beyond anything I had done before. The training was far from perfect, but it reminded me why doing hard things matters. In the moments of fatigue, exhaustion, and doubt, that is where the real growth happened.
Grateful to have raced alongside @stephanzimm , @jandhoore and @alejorodriguez5 , and to have had my family and friends along the sidelines cheering me on.
First Ironman 70.3 ✅
Next up: NYC Marathon 🏁
To have known and been loved by Mamagenk has been one of the greatest joys of my life.
If you had the privilege of meeting her, you undoubtedly felt her impact. Living to 102 is no small feat; and while we selfishly thought she might live forever, she truly squeezed every drop out of life until the very last minute.
She showed us what it means to live with a genuine lust for life, a curiosity for the world, and a soul dedicated to the service of others. Outside of our family, her greatest love was for the people of Africa. Alongside my grandfather, she spent the latter half of her life across the continent serving as a fierce champion for women’s rights.
This fall, I am running my first marathon. I can think of no better way to honor her legacy than to run for AMREF, Africa’s largest indigenous NGO. Every dollar donated goes directly toward their life-saving work—training midwives, equipping clinics, and providing clean water access across the continent she loved so much.
Mamagenk, I will miss you immensely, but your spirit lives on in all 19 of your grandchildren who were shaped by your example.
If you’d like to support this cause in her memory, I’d be truly grateful. The link is in my bio.
After years of collaborating with brands and creatives across creative development, production, and post — I’m excited to officially share something that’s been in the works for a while:
𝐌𝐞𝐞𝐭 𝐌𝐍𝐓𝐑𝐀.
MNTRA is a content studio rooted in craft, powered by partnership, and built for the now. We specialize in intentional storytelling — the kind that resonates deeply and lasts beyond the scroll. From strategy to production to post, we collaborate with brands, creatives, and agencies to make work that’s culturally fluent and creatively sharp.
Whether you’re building a campaign, telling your next big story or exploring new formats like UGC or branded podcasts, we’d love to connect.
Explore our work at mntra.co or reach out at [email protected]
At the end of 2022 I was burnout from work and my daily life.
I felt uninspired and traveling has always been a source of new perspective and energy for me. So, at the beginning of this year, I shoved some clothes and a camera into a backpack and set off for Southeast Asia with nothing planned but a plane ticket to Bangkok.
Over the course of the last five weeks I traveled through Thailand and Indonesia and met some of the most incredible people, marveled at the natural beauty of our world and connected with two very beautiful cultures. As cliché as it may sound, my own version of Eat Pray Love.
In Thailand, I got my first tattoo, a Thai phrase pronounced “sabai sabai”. The word directly translates to “comfortable” or “happy” but it encompasses a broader state of relaxation and comfort in all aspects of life, an internal tranquility that the Thai people have seemingly mastered. It is a phrase that exemplifies a Thai vision for a complete and well-rounded life.
Headed back into my daily life this tattoo is a good reminder to find a bit more of that balance and to be grateful for the little things we oftentimes overlook.
Feeling refreshed, excited for whats ahead and grateful to be able to experience the corners of our world!
Thank you Chapman, for letting me call you home for the last four(ish) years. A home where I have had the most incredible experiences, grown immensely as a person and created friendships that will be with me for a lifetime.
Onto Act II
