A‌ ‌Legacy‌ ‌Continues:‌ ‌Erin‌ ‌Fenerty’s‌ ‌mission‌ ‌to‌ ‌help‌ ‌those‌ ‌battling‌ ‌cancer‌ ‌

On March 27th, 2022, over ten thousand runners will participate in the Love Run Philadelphia Half Marathon and 7K race. Each of these runners is driven by his or her own motivating force. Some will run for the sake of fitness, others for the camaraderie of friends, and some to prove something to themselves. For runner, registered nurse, and beloved daughter Erin Fenerty, the Love Run is an opportunity to continue the legacy of her father to support cancer patients and their families through their darkest hours.

It seemed like a normal day of high school classes for Erin at Germantown Academy, the place her father was a beloved member of the faculty. Jim Fenerty, Erin’s dad, taught a few classes each year but was best known for his decades of coaching the basketball team and leading the athletic department. On this day, Erin sat in her father’s classroom for his Civil Liberties course when she noticed something wasn’t right. Jim’s entire right side of his body had suddenly gone numb.

After the school nurse determined Jim’s blood pressure was dangerously high, an ambulance was summoned and he found himself on the way to the hospital. A short while later, Jim was diagnosed with a rare form of blood cancer called polycythemia vera. Treatment began immediately and included anti-platelets and oral chemotherapy. While Jim was not one to complain, Erin suspects her dad suffered more from his disease than he led his family to believe.

Jim didn’t let his diagnosis slow him down or stand in his way in serving the community.