09/05/24: “4th ANNUAL MARK AND TAYLOR KAIPUST MEMORIAL RUN”
Date: September 5th, 2024
PAX: (87) Schrute, Sweet Roll, Baby Shark, Gigablast, ICB, Uncle Jesse, Tenacious D, Safe ride, Redwire, Sparty, KOA, Amadeus, Parsecs, Low Flow, Swiper, Wolverine, Larry Legend, Ichiro, Invictus, Yugo, Knobs, Longboard, Boss Hogg, Sweet Sweet, Rayban, Harding, Simmons, Animal House, Levy, Rooney, Fun Dip, Mr. Hanky, Stranglehold, Frosty, Grease Fire, Q Tip, Wentworth, Stripes, Ogre, Bobby Knight (FNG), Babel (FNG), Tweety, Bowflex, Hip Hip, Sundance, Good Lookin’, Canary, Biff, Razzle Dazzle, Truly, Dirty Bird, Otis, JC, Dotsun, Bambi, Knobs, Ear tag, Baby Back, Drain Weasel, Roaring Kitty, Big Range, Big One, Hosel Rocket, Tom Tom, Peg Leg, Shingles, Jackson 5, Brinks, Shark Week, Switchfoot, Noodle, Cherry Garcia, Duracell, Sister Act, Samples, Cougar, Mayme, Firewalker, Fresh Prince, Urkle, Free time, Mulligan, Snaggletooth, Speed square, Lot Lizard, Gundy, Speedbump, Squeaky Clean, Farva
FNGs: Bobby Knight & Babel
Pre-Run: Lots of HIMs (Check Strava)
AO: The Sandlot
Q: Farva & Squeaky Clean
Conditions: Party Cloudy, 647 degrees F, Feels like 66 degrees F, Humidity 79%, Wind 5.2 mph from SW.
At 5:30, YHC welcomed the PAX to the Sandlot and recited the 5 core principles, mission statement, credo, and disclaimer.
Disclaimer: I am not a professional, modify as necessary. The exercises are simply a suggestion.
Warmarama: No warmarama…. we got right to business.
Pre-Thang: Nope…. see above.
Thang:
The running route this morning would follow Lincoln road from the flags to 96th street and then back to the flags, but with stops every mile to reflect and share stories about Mark and Taylor.
The PAX then headed west on the Lincoln Road towards 84th street. After 1 mile, we stopped at Trinity church and reflected during 48 seconds of silence. Mark was 41 years old and Taylor was 7.
We continued west on Lincoln Road towards Papillion Landing, after another mile and turning around at 96th street, we stopped again and Wolverine shared these words about Mark: (Summarizing) Mark had unwavering positivity, even in the face of challenges such as his mother’s cancer battle. Mark also had a strong belief in others, like everything was going to be ok no matter what, actually better than ok. He was Ted Lasso before there was a Ted Lasso.
We stopped one last time at the park just west of 84th street and before heading down the home stretch towards the flags. Larry Legend (Mark’s brother) shared these words: First and foremost, thank you to Squeaky Clean for organizing the first memorial run and continuing this tradition with Farva. Each year, our family is amazed by the community’s generosity in honoring Mark and Taylor’s lives.
I have praised Mark for the last three years and always tried to keep the stories about him positive and shine a light on his numerous great qualities. Now, it is time to highlight some of Mark’s not-so-desired qualities. For starters, Mark was the ultimate procrastinator. To this day, I am still amazed he and Farva were such good friends. Everything he did was so last minute it drove me crazy. However, as Wolverine mentioned, he had a calm to him that everything was going to work out. My wife and I would repeatedly be frustrated with the last minute, now I find myself missing it. As you can imagine, procrastination was passed down, and at 7 years old, Taylor was just as bad as his dad. Taylor didn’t potty train until about 2 weeks before pre-K because he didn’t want to. If he used the toilet, he had to stop what he was doing, and the diaper was easier. He tested Mark’s patience constantly; watching from afar was one of the greatest things. Often, Mark would ask me to “talk some sense into your nephew,” but as his uncle, I encouraged Taylor’s behavior and often fed him some tips on what to do next time. The fact that these two entered into Heaven together gives me the ultimate joy. I know Tay is still pushing his dad’s buttons, but at the end of the day, he was a great mix of Mark and me.
After passing 84th Street, we began the journey down Lincoln Road and back to the flags. It was such an awesome site to see so much orange and blue running down Lincoln road. Once everyone arrived back at the flags, the guys from the Steel Mill (who had rucked with Ogre) joined us.
Mary: None
NOR
See above for PAX present
Announcements and Prayers:
Twetty VQ at the Bell Tower tomorrow
COT:
I wanted to start by thanking everyone for being here and everyone that donated to the scholarship. I also what to thank all of the F3 leadership, Sarpy sector leadership, and all the site Qs. A special thanks to Wolverine and Larry Legend for sharing stories and Frosty for the burritos. I especially want to thank Ogre for leading the Steel Mill ruck and joining us and Squeaky clean for helping organize this run and beginning the tradition four years ago. The support from everyone is an awesome feeling and because of that support we have raised over $4000 and counting for the scholarship.
The thing I want to share this morning about Mark is how we were opposites. He was not very organized and always late, but I never worried about it with Mark because it always worked out and would end up being great. I knew I could never be like that and I think I was slightly jealous. Mark had a personality that made him unforgettable and I have met many F3 members who I didn’t know knew him, but they still remember him. He was everyone’s friend from the moment he met them and I was blessed to be one of his best.
My message for today is simple. Mark and Taylor were killed driving to a Husker game and probably never even knew what hit them. This is something we all probably do multiple times a year. Life is precious and tomorrow is not promised. Live each day to its fullest and live it thinking about your legacy. How do you want people to remember you? But most importantly, tell those you love the way you feel. F3 has taught me that telling another man you love him is not something to be ashamed about. I told Mark I loved him at his funeral. I ask you to please not be the guy telling someone you love for the first time at their funeral. I love you all. Thanks for the support.
Prayer – Swiper
10-7, EOTFarva
