BOSTON — Laurie Kearney, 47, of San Diego had already planned to run in the Boston Marathon for the 19th time before the terrorist bombs exploded a year ago — abruptly ending the iconic event with bloodshed, death and terror.

However, she said the attack motivated some of her San Diego friends to qualify for this year’s marathon “as a show of strength and support that the bad guys weren’t going to take away this race.”

Indeed, on a warm and sunny Easter Monday, the 118th Boston Marathon was held as scheduled, in part through the endurance of some 36,000 participants, the legions who cheered them on and law enforcement, medical personnel and volunteers who worked to ensure a safe day.

And at Mass in a nearby chapel after her run, Kearney thanked God that she and her husband had a safe race, there were no “major catastrophes” and that Meb Keflezighi, a Californian by way of Eritrea, won.

Keflezighi posted the best running time of the Boston Marathon, at 2 hours, 8 minutes and 37 seconds. He became the first U.S. participant to win the race since 1985 and made the Sign of the Cross steps before crossing the finish line.

“I’m blessed to be an American, and God bless America, and God bless Boston for this special day,” Keflezghi said, according to CBS.

Over the years, Kearney has visited the St. Francis Chapel in the Prudential Center Mall in downtown Boston for many Masses. The chapel is very close to the course and holds a Mass geared for runners the Sunday before the marathon. If possible, after finishing the race, she likes to attend the Monday afternoon Mass also.

“I thought it was particularly important and meaningful to go to Mass today, based on the fact that it was such a wonderful day,” said Kearney, one of several people the Register caught up with on Marathon Monday, also known as Patriots Day in Massachusetts.

Cadet Runners and Duo Teams
Alex Jefferies, 23, and Adam Irons, 22, both seniors at the U.S. Military Academy-West Point, wanted to represent their institution well. They had run at the Boston Marathon before, and, last year, Jefferies was in his hotel room, having already completed the race, when the two bombs went off at around 2:49pm, close to the finish line.

His roommate suggested they go downstairs and see if their teammates were okay; fortunately, they were. Jefferies said part of their military training is to stay calm under stress.

Irons, who had been here in 2012 too, said, “It means a lot to us that we’re going to be able to stand up for our country in various situations that we’re put in.”

Andrea Leber and Gervas Wynn, both 49, were part of the Duo Team Division — with one participant pushing or guiding another in a specialized wheelchair. The arrangement was made famous by Rick and Dick Hoyt, who participated in their last Boston Marathon on Monday as a duo.

Participating with the Hoyts in Boston was a particular motivation for Leber and Wynn.

Wynn has cerebral palsy, and his ability to smile is a “very nice thank you” to Leber.

“We give back to each other,” Leber said of their athletic partnership. “I couldn’t do it without him, and I am sure he couldn’t do it without me.”

After completing “Heartbreak Hill,” a notorious stretch of the course, the duo entertained the crowd by popping a wheelie, she said.

Leber was also appreciative of the added security on Monday and said her husband’s car, which transports the wheelchair, was given particular scrutiny from personnel.

“I’d rather have him checked five times and have the dog in my car checking for bombs than anything happening,” said Leber, originally from Switzerland but is now a U.S. citizen.

She expressed some initial fear when approaching the finish line, but shook it off with the supportive crowd.
“That’s the nicest moment of the whole race, if you think about it,” said Leber.

“That’s what you were training for, that’s what you want to do: You want to finish — and it should not be combined with fear,” she said.

A World Race
Sarah Dinneen gingerly approached a small set of stairs in the Prudential Mall following her marathon run.

“We’re in, like, agony; yeah,” said Dinneen, 21, referring also to her teammate, Suzanne McDonnell, 31.

Both women are from Ireland and are students at the Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland.

They qualified for the Boston Marathon by first running the Dublin Marathon, with McDonnell noting that the heat in Boston was “just unbelievable.”

The women said people throughout the course were cheering upon seeing the Irish flags on their jerseys. Dinneen described the last segment of the race as “just goosebumps,” with the supportive atmosphere.

Dinneen also said she prayed around Mile Seven, asking for help in the race, and, after that, “it was okay.”

“I just prayed the whole way along that I finish — to be honest with you,” said McDonnell. “I was just like, ‘Just get me home; just get me home,’” she said with a laugh, noting she had thigh discomfort starting from about mile 10 that lasted the rest of the race.

Hailing from Christchurch, New Zealand, Carly Avery has been in nine marathons before, but this was her first time at Boston’s, and none other was like it, she said.

“You really got a sense that people were supporting not just the runners, but the whole experience from last year,” said Avery.

Chika Tanabe, from Tokyo, ran in last year’s Boston Marathon and noted she was meters away from finishing when the race was called off after the bombing. Like many others who had last year’s race cut short, she finished the course without incident on Monday.

Proud and Watchful Parents
Last year, Harry and Irene Vafides were at their usual spot along Boylston Street, near Mile Marker 26, to watch their son Timothy pass as he get close to the finish line. It was around this point that the bombs went off ahead, and Timothy told his parents and his girlfriend not to go in that direction. Like Tanabe, he also did not finish the course.

Timothy, 34, had planned on last year being his last Boston Marathon, but he decided to return this year and plans on next year as well.

His father Harry called last year a “long, excruciating day, a nervous day,” and the family could not leave the area until hours afterward.

During the race, Timothy’s supporters watched him pass by from the second floor window of Lord and Taylor, an upscale department store. Hours before, the police had closed access to the course on Boylston Street, limiting the number of people who could get closest to the runners.

“I’m proud of him; I’m so proud of him,” said Irene, who noticed her son was looking for them when he passed by their usual meeting spot.

“For all those people who got injured last year and those who didn’t make it, he’s doing it for them,” she said.

“I’m proud of the whole town; the whole town backs everybody who runs,” said Harry, noting the extensive preparation of marathon runners.

Prayers and Encouragement
During the Monday afternoon Mass in St. Francis Chapel, Serena Postar, 50, lectored and led a decade of the Rosary afterward. She had been praying for the marathon leading up to Patriots Day and would like to run in the future.

“It’s the Lord Jesus who will be in complete control of this Boston Marathon,” said Postar, adding that he alone can stop “whatever wickedness.”

She had watched participants earlier on Boylston and on television and noted their smiling faces as they approached the finish line.

Laurie Kearney referenced Father John Wykes’ “impressive” homily during Easter Sunday’s “Runners’ Mass.”

According to Kearney, the priest compared the darkness of last year’s Boston Marathon and some of the following events (such as the lockdown of Boston) to the darkness of Good Friday and how it seemed like evil had the upper hand.

But then he brought up the Resurrection and how “this year will be like, you know, our resurrection.”

After 6pm on Monday afternoon, John Minervino and his family were cheering on straggling participants as they approached  the finish line.

Much earlier, Minervino, 50, had completed the course — his 14th consecutive Boston Marathon — in about three hours. He had since showered and brought his wife, Yvette, and two daughters down to Boylston Street before heading to dinner, even pushing back reservations a half hour so they could stay and cheer longer.

He said he was “amazed” at the number of people still offering encouragement to these last runners, as in years past this time of day would have be much quieter.

“The atmosphere here is absolutely terrific,” said Minervino.

He remarked that these participants had been moving more than six hours, perhaps even eight.

Yvette had some nervousness before bringing her daughters to the race, but she was determined to return and not let fear have the upper hand. She also recounted praying a lot that morning.

Said Yvette, “We won — I mean, look at all these people here: I mean, it’s just so amazing.”

Register correspondent Justin Bell writes from Boston.