Conway Running Club

It is a sad day for the Conway Running Club because today we lost one of our runners, one of our friends, one great person who met with us in the darkness of morning and ran the streets of Conway  with us.  Tony (or “Tony the Tiger” as some affectionately called him), we’ve missed you as you’ve battled with cancer and will forever remember you now that you are gone.  And honestly, we can’t believe you are gone. 

You were many things to many people, but many of us only knew you as a fellow runner.  We will remember you in the context of our runs together.  The conversations we had side by side on the road and gathering ourselves when the run was over.  Sharing stories of races you’d run and things you had done with friends and family.  Your hopes for a faster time and another finish and to do the Little Rock Marathon every year as long as you could. 

Your life is an example of living life to the fullest and giving it all you’ve got.  The abrupt ending to your life sadly reminds us of our own mortality.  We train and run so that we can always be strong, so that we can continue to win and so we can look at our limitations and show we are strong and that we will not give in to them.  But we will.  We love life and the people we get to live it with and we train and run so we will be strong and live forever. But we won’t.   We never thought we would have to see you go so soon.  But we did.  We fought the battle with cancer with you and as we say good bye, we are thankful for the memories and friendship you left behind, for being part of the CRC family and even in this sad time, for helping us to remember that we too have limitations and every race will not be a PR and every life will end. 

So in this sad time, we celebrate your life.  We celebrate every time you toed the starting line and crossed the finish line.  Even in sadness, we are encouraged to live the life that you lived, to enjoy and appreciate every time we get to run and every race we get to finish.  We will seek out balance in our own lives because just as you have left behind a wonderful family and legacy, we hope to do the same.  We will not stop running, living and remembering.  For it is in these moments, and it is with people like you that we find part of the meaning and deep friendships that will keep us going until we too will cross the final finish line. 

It is you, Tony the Tiger, that we celebrate today. 

In memory of Tony Griffin Sherrod [November 28, 1968 - August 24, 2010]

Tony Sherrod “Eight Little Rock Marathons in a row!! They were all ugly, but I finished!! Congrats to all who finished. Hope everyone felt better than me at the finish.”

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