Justine Gentilini

One of Justine’s favorite memories is having her mom cheering her on (and eating a celebratory post-race donut) at the City to Sea Half-Marathon in 2018. Despite joking that she would never run long distance again, here she is! Justine is excited to get back to her training routine and feels more motivated than ever to get into long-distance shape with the support of Team Cookie and Fred’s Team.

She is currently training by running along the beach in sunny San Luis Obispo, California. She is most looking forward to coming back to New York for the marathon and running through all five boroughs in honor of her incredible mom. Besides running, she is currently cross training by hiking with her dog, Rosie, and riding her horse, Tucker. She is excited to share her West Coast running journey with all of the Cookie’s Cause followers!

Lara Gentilini

Lara has idolized her mom since long before she fully understood the depth of her love. In fifth grade, she wrote in her yearbook that her career aspiration was, “to be a mom, just like my mom, because she is the best mom in the world.” While some things never change, some things have to–like the fact that Lara wouldn’t necessarily label herself as a ‘runner.’ She is currently training in the St. Louis humidity to (slowly) work up to the big day, and is already envisioning Chick-fil-A at the finish line.

With her trusty pug Olive (and Meghan!) by her side, Lara is determined to complete this race, even if it means being pushed by Justine in Olive’s running stroller to get there. Besides running, Lara is currently cross training in the aisles of Target, where she sprints to try to get the last bottle of hand sanitizer.

Some of Lara’s favorite things to do with her mom were ride bikes, go for walks, visit Atlantis, set up her classroom, and grab dinner together in the city. No matter how fast Lara can run when this is all over, she’ll always honor her mom by stopping to smell the flowers along the way.