We are happy to report that the NRC Member of the Month is back!  Last year we got to know several fellow runners and we’re excited to continue this tradition in 2012.  Now, my NRC siblings, as with any good clan, you know you’re one of the family when you get put to work… so I consider it an honor that Scott has passed on the opportunity to highlight one of our own for the monthly column to me.  Each month, by the luck of the draw, we’ll all learn a little bit more about our fellow wandering, yet warmhearted, and of course, workout addicted running crew.  So here it goes…(and don’t forget to click on each link for some extra entertainment!!)

JANUARY NRC Member of the Month

I’m so psyched to kick things off and although it is already “technically” like the last day of January, I hope you will allow me to introduce you to the January NRC Member of the Month.  Okay, so you’ll never guess who I saw at Mama’s Java last Wednesday night.  No, not Michelle Obama or Chrissy Haslam… nope, I got to sit and talk with none other than the First Lady of NRC – Kelli Alexander!  With all the charm, poise, intelligence, and beauty worthy of this title, Kelli sat across from me in that buzzing coffee shop surrounded by the warm smells of
Paninis and peanut butter wraps, and opened up about her life pre-Nolensville, the joys of running and yes, even her bucket list!

Kelli was born and raised in southeast Nashville, a.k.a Brentioch.  Her and her two sisters, who have also stayed in the middle TN area, are still close and have run 3 half marathons together.  During her formative years at Apollo Junior High, Kelli met the love of her life, Scott Alexander (only she didn’t know it yet.  It would be another six years of signing each other’s yearbooks before the two would become an item!  So romantic, right?!)

After high school, Kelli became a Blue Raider and hit the books at Middle Tennessee State University.  She graduated with a degree in Criminal Justice, which explains her love of mysteries.  Kelli loves to read and when I asked her what types of books she read, Scott laughed and said she usually reads stories that involve people killing other people.  I’m sure she’s usually solved the crime way before the last page, too!

Kelli works as a paralegal, managing a total of seven states and calling the shots on over 200 cases at any given time at Caterpillar Financial.  Kelli is also an amazing mother to her sons, Ryne and Matthew.  Both have followed in their parent’s footsteps, taking their journey for higher learning to the MTSU campus.  (Don’t you know there are some great exchanges as they swap bragging rights with Scott on his other favorite team, the Black and Gold ‘Dores.)

As for running, it was only 5 years ago that Kelli tied up her Asics and started logging the miles.  Since then, Kelli has done two full marathons, both in the windy city of Chicago in 2008 and 2011, NRC’s Ragnar Relay team in 2011 and too many half marathons to count. She can
often be seen running with her equally stylish, partner-in-crime, Shawn Berkau (see August ‘10 Mem of the Month).  Her favorite race so far was the Women’s Half Marathon in St. Pete.  I mean, how can you beat running alongthe beach with that beautiful Bay shore view!

Kelli loves to travel and could probably be an official tour guide in Vegas!  In addition to her various trips to races and girl’s weekends away, she also takes a cruise with Scott every year.  Still, there are a few things still on her bucket list. While Kelli exudes a quiet, calm that immediately puts you at ease, she is also one of the quickest wits I know.  When asked about the limitless list of things she would like to do, she said, “Go on safari in Africa, take a tour of Italy, and NEVER do another marathon again!”  Hilarious!!!

Of course, she was one of the original 4 NRC members back on that fateful March 2010 run and continues to support NRC by welcoming new runners, stashing water on routes for our summer runs, helping keep track of all our T-shirt orders, and so much more.  She is currently training for the Mt. Carmel Half Marathon in April and will race “All Night Long” again with her Ragnar teammates in November.  Thanks Kelli for the great interview and good luck with your training!  I guess that’s a “wrap”… until next month!

Amy
Owsley

Although I am not sure of the exact date, I remember that it was a very cold Saturday morning the day that I first met Mike and Megan Brazill.  John Pryor, Mike Niedzielski, and I were running on Nolensville Road when we saw a little white car pulling out of the parking lot beside Sonic.  All of us noticed that it looked like this young, attractive couple were wearing running clothes.  As it turned out, they went to Martin’s and didn’t see anyone and were actually going back home!!  Luckily, they rolled down their window and asked if we were with a local running club that they had heard about.  This “chance” meeting turned out to be a blessing as Mike and Megan have been a huge part of NRC’s success over the last year.  And yes, they are September’s Members of the Month!!

Mike and Megan have been married for just over a year and moved to Nolensville soon after they got married.  Megan describes herself as a “country farm girl UT graduate” and Mike as a “city-slicker Penn State alumni.”  Mike (born and raised next door to Dunder Mifflin in Scranton, PA)  met his “beautiful wife” and co-member of the month over five years ago in Knoxville while working out at their former gym.  Aside from hanging out with his NRC friends, Mike enjoys golf, weight training, playing tennis, hiking, and traveling.  Megan loves to ride horses, mountain bike, and…are you ready for this….eat fried foods!!!  Both of them enjoy spending time with their dogs Isabel and Ollie as well as partaking in a glass or two of wine from time to time!!

Although Mike has only been running for a little over a year (luckily for NRC Megan introduced him to the crazy sport), Mike has already run two half marathons and three 10k’s.    Megan, on the other hand, has been running for a long time and is one of NRC’s fastest runners.  If you don’t believe me, try joining her for a Wednesday night run!!  Mike and Megan plan on running the Louisville Half Marathon in October.  In November, they will be part of the NRC team participating in the Ragnar Relay.  Mike also admits that he will probably be “talked into running a couple of other races by Megan” before the end of the year.  For some reason, I think that is a pretty safe bet!!

When I asked Mike and Megan to tell us something that other NRC’ers aren’t aware of, Mike told me that he worked for Michelin Tire before joining his current employer, Johnson and Johnson.   So if you need some tire info, ask Mike!!  As for Megan, she has never, ever been able to burp.  Really???  Someone get that girl a few beers and let’s fix this problem immediately!!

Seriously, thanks Mike and Megan for all that you do for NRC.  We are blessed to have you as part of our group and we look forward to running many more miles with you!!

For August, the Nolensville Running Club chose two runners who have been there from the very beginning.  They were there when NRC consisted of only a handful of runners on Wednesday nights.  They have helped us welcome in all of our new runners and we are lucky to be able to spend time with them a couple of times per week.  This month, NRC congratulates Shawn Berkau and Steven Fleming as our Members of the Month!!

SHAWN BERKAU

Shawn is a consistent runner in both the Wednesday night and Saturday morning NRC runs.  However, even if you have spent a lot of time around Shawn, there are probably some things that you do not know about one of our favorite runners!! 

Shawn is originally from LA.  No, not Los Angeles or even Lower Antioch but Lower Alabama.  To be more exact, Fairhope, Alabama.  She has a son (Jude) who will be entering the 6th grade and a daughter (Marina) who will be a freshman in college this year.  Although most of us know her husband and refer to him as Steve, you have probably heard Shawn refer to him as “Buns.”   Personally, I will continue to call him Steve and would suggest others do the same 🙂

Shawn is a realtor for French Christian Patterson.  When she is not working, she enjoys decorating, space planning, fishing, gardening, and riding ATV’s with Steve.  And last but not least, she is always up for a good glass of vino!!

Her upcoming running plans are plentiful!!  Shawn plans on running the following races between now and the end of the year:  Lillian Run for the Mullet 5k, the Women’s Half, The Chicago full (her first one by the way), the Ragnar Relay with her NRC friends, and the Las Vegas full or half(yet TBD). 

And maybe one or two other things that you may not know about Shawn?  She is enthralled with sharks and she is the oldest of 4 girls.  In fact, growing up her family would house foster children and, at one point, they had 8 kids in their house!!

The next time you see Shawn wish her luck in all of her upcoming races and congratulate her on being the August Female Member of the Month!

STEVEN FLEMING

Like Shawn, Steven was one of NRC’s first members.  If you have ever run with Steven (and I must admit that very few of our members can accomplish this based on the pace that he runs), you will realize very quickly that he is an all-around great guy who has a passion for our crazy sport.

If you have ever logged miles in the Bent Creek subdivision of Nolensville, you have probably passed Steven’s house.  Although he lives in Nolensville, he was born and raised in Franklin, TN and went to BGA.  After completing his undergrad at UT Knoville (majoring in Logistics), he earned his MBA from Belmont in 2001.  He is the Director of Transportation Operations for the Ingram Group in Lavergne.

Steven married Kristy in January, 1999.  Most of us have probably seen Kristy at Mama’s Java on Saturday mornings either before or after one of her favorite activities, Zumba.  Anyway, Steven and Kristy met by chance during a huge snow storm and…well….the rest is history!!

Steven and Kristy have twin 8 year old daughters – Hannah and Amelia.  Steven describes Hannah as a “spunky, fun loving girl full of energy.”  And Amelia was the inspiration behind Steven’s decision to start running 7 years ago.  Amelia was born with Spina Bifida and is profoundly deaf but she has the best, most easy-going personality of the group according to Steven.

One of the most admirable qualities about Steven is that he does his best to make sure that his running addiction does not interfere with his family time.  In fact, if you see shadowy figures running the streets of Bent Creek at 4am it is probably Steven and one of his fellow NRC’ers whom he has bribed into getting out of bed well before sunrise to get in some miles!!   Outside of running, Steven loves spending time with his family, watching football, and getting in some time at the gym for additional strength training.

Steven’s running plans for the year include the Murfreesboro Middle Half and the Chickamauga Battlefield Marathon in November.  He has a passion for these two specific races as he has done the Middle Half 5 times and the Chickamauga race (either half or full) 3 times.  His goals for these two races are 1:30 for the half and 3:30 for the full.  Did I mention that Steven is one of NRC’s speediest runners!!!!

Last but not least, a few things that you may not know about Steven.  Although he graduated from UT, he is a HUGE Auburn fan.  In fact, the top sports moment of his life was attending the BCS Championship game last year in Arizona.  Steven is also learning sign language which he claims is very hard.  And maybe the oddest interesting fact about Steven is the fact that keeps one pair of every running shoe model that he has ever owned.  He clarifies that it is not every pair of shoes, just one of each model/year.  Muck to Kristy’s displeasure, he has them stacked in their spare closet.  Kristy was kind enough to send a picture to NRC of Steven’s collection (without him knowing) just so that we can get a glimpse into the mind of one of NRC’s favorite (and speediest) members.  Thanks Steven….and Kristy 🙂