Race4Chase helps thousands of children carry on Sandy Hook victim's dream
What began as a mother’s promise to honor her son has grown into a program that has helped thousands of children across the country become triathletes.
Rebecca Kowalski founded Race4Chase and the CMAK Foundation after losing her son, Chase Kowalski, in the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.
Chase was 6 years old and loved the sport of triathlon.
“After we lost Chase, he came to me in a vision and said, mama, we’re going to change the world,” Kowalski said. “And I said, Chase, I don’t understand. And he put the people in front of me.”
One of those people was Jim O’Rourke, now a board member of the CMAK Foundation.
“I’ve seen her grow up through the program,” O’Rourke said. “But I remember the first year, her hesitation to go in front of a bunch of kids, and now she stood in front of 700 kids and, I’m going to say a thousand parents and family members here today and just gave a heartwarming speech.”
Together, Kowalski and O’Rourke helped grow Race4Chase from a program offered at a handful of Connecticut YMCAs into one that now operates at dozens of locations across the country.
The program has helped train more than 5,000 children to compete in and complete a triathlon, fulfilling the dream Chase never had the chance to achieve himself.
Lucas Palomeque is one of those participants.
“I’ve been doing this program for three years, and I think it really stuck to my heart,” Palomeque said. “In the beginning, I didn’t really, like, know how to bike, run and swim. I was actually forced to learn biking prior to starting the camps. I didn’t know at all, but like what the camp really is for and what it means. I just think it’s a great program.”
For Kowalski, each child who crosses the finish line is another reminder of her son’s legacy.
“As hard as it is to not see my own son grow up… to be welcomed into these families, that just warms my heart. Every time,” she said.
This year would have been Chase Kowalski’s 21st birthday.
Instead, the foundation created in his name continues to grow, helping children across the country discover the sport he loved while ensuring his legacy lives on.
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