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The past year of the pandemic has felt like a marathon with an ever-receding finish line. But as we near the end, one local 81-year-old is looking to give back to the frontline workers who helped him through his darkest days of battling COVID-19—by running a half marathon of his own.

Along with friends in the Frontrunners running clinic, Keith Ashton is set to run a half marathon on May 1 to raise funds for the Victoria Hospitals Foundation after spending time last year receiving treatment for COVID-19 at Royal Jubilee Hospital. 

“It's just a way of giving a little bit back and recognition for all the care that they gave me,” Ashton said.

The group has called their unofficial race “Run with the Rabbit.” It’s named after Ashton’s nickname, “the Rabbit,” which he received in his early days with the running clinic after excitedly starting runs faster than the group’s pace. 

These days, after five years with the running clinic, he’s learned important lessons about distance running that are critical skills to managing the pandemic as well—patience, resilience, and finding support in the community. In 2019, he completed his first marathon alongside the Frontrunners team.

For Ashton, the community he’s found through Frontrunners has been pivotal to the success of his half marathon. 

“I run a lot better when I have people around me,” he said.

It’s been a long road to the race day, and one that hasn’t been easy.

In March 2020, Ashton was among the first people in BC to test positive for COVID-19, after finding himself aboard a plane full of dentists from the now-infamous dentistry conference in Vancouver. He stayed in Royal Jubilee Hospital’s High Acuity Unit, and received treatment from a team of doctors and nurses he calls “absolutely wonderful.”

Two of his doctors were runners, and he knew they could tell that behind each question he had about his health—whether that be about blood count or respiratory function—was Ashton’s concerns about whether he would be able to go home and start running again.

“They knew what was inherent in the questions,” he said. “So one of the last things that they said to me when I left was, ‘You get out there and get on running as soon as you can.’”

Inspired by the compassionate care he’d received, Ashton was eager to find a way to give back to the hospital after he was released. It was then he decided to put his passion to use, and run a marathon to raise money for the High Acuity Unit at Royal Jubilee.

Ashton was advised to start slow in his training. Three weeks after he was released, he began by alternating between walking a block and running a block on his route. From there, he worked his stamina back up—running a few blocks, walking for a few, and then back to running.

However, Ashton hit another roadblock last November, when complications led to another hospitalization and two stents placed in his heart. He was advised to run a half marathon instead of the full length he’d planned, and has been training hard to make it happen.

“Keith has turned a time of unknown and fear to a time of creating hope and community,” Connie Robertson said. “What he has shown is resilience, and he brings people together.”