Here we are in November! The weather is starting to turn chilly and instead of bundling up in a cozy blanket inside I have been training 6 days a week outside. I am training for the ING Miami Half-Marathon coming up in January. We are 6 weeks into our training schedule and I have cut my time in half since we began in September! Why am I doing all this? To raise money for Crohn's and Colitis!

My daughter Alexa was diagnosed with Crohn's Disease 3 years ago and we have been battling with her health ever since. It began with her losing 25lbs! That's a lot for a 9 year old! Then we began all the testing. After several months she was diagnosed with Crohn's and we began a routine of juggling 9 pills a day into Alexa's schedule. Over the past 3 years Alexa has had 2 Endoscopies, 2 Colonoscopies and just last week she had a Capsule Endoscopy (she had to swallow a camera that would snap pictures of her intestines).

There is no cure for Crohn's Disease and that is why I am training for this marathon. I am trying to raise $4000 for the CCFA (Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America). Please help support me by making a donation through this website or make checks payable to: CCFA and mail them to

Valerie Richter

4208 W Sieben Place

Milwaukee, WI 53216

Please pass this website on to others that would be interested in helping! There are also benefits to any corporate donations of $1000 or more if you know of any business that would like to support the CCFA.

If you have any questions please call or email me at:

414-828-7399 or vcr1017@yahoo.com.

Thanks for all your love and support!!