Run for the Hill of It beneficiary named

by JAMES STURDIVANT

Every year since 1989, a group of local residents and businesspeople have come together to help a family struggling to meet the needs of a severely ill or disabled child. Through July’s Run For the Hill of It footrace and a dinner-dance at Chestnut Hill College in October, the Friends of Erik, named for cystic fibrosis patient Erik Engwall, raise much-needed money for families forced to cope with severe illness while trying to pay bills in an era of rapidly rising health-care costs. 

This year’s beneficiary is Nathaniel Makowicz, a 7-year-old from Spring City, Pa. Born 13 weeks premature, Nathaniel struggles with a host of medical problems, including hydrocephalus, cerebral palsy, cortical visual impairment, developmental delays and epilepsy. He requires a feeding tube to eat and special equipment to read and move around his home safely, as well as intense physical therapy.

With so many worthy applicants, selecting a beneficiary can be gut-wrenching for the Friends committee, currently co-chaired by Wyndmoor resident Mark McMahon of DelRan Builders and Beth Breault, a Chestnut Hill native who works at Deckert LLP.

“The room was full of tears,” McNally’s Tavern proprietor Anne McNally, a founding member of the group, said of the selection meeting. “Nate is amazing. He’s just this outgoing child ... he doesn’t know anything’s the matter with him.”

The family was informed on Nathaniel’s birthday that they had been chosen, she said.

The community will have an opportunity to meet Nathaniel and his family at this month’s meeting of the Chestnut Hill Rotary Club, which takes place June 22 at 7:30 a.m. at the Chestnut Hill Presbyterian Church.

This year’s Run for the Hill of It, a USATF-certified 5-mile run or 1-mile fun walk, will take place July 30. The race kicks off at 8:30 a.m. at Northwestern Avenue and Forbidden Drive in Fairmount Park. To register for the race online or make a donation, go to www.runforthehillofit.org.