On Marathon Monday, 30,000 runners took to the streets from Hopkinton to Boylston St. for the 130th Boston Marathon. The elite athletes grabbed the headlines: defending champions, American record holders, and a celebrity field that included Chelsea Clinton, Zdeno Chara, and astronaut Suni Williams. But the real story of the Marathon has never been about who crosses the finish line first, or which celebrity might be spotted on the course.
It’s about the roughly 3,200 runners wearing charity bibs who didn’t qualify but earned their spot through something arguably harder: convincing hundreds of people to support a cause they believe in. And the reason they succeed year after year? Stories. Personal, specific, human stories.
This year, 193 nonprofit organizations made up the Bank of America Boston Marathon Official Charity Program, up from 176 last year, and the program continues to break its own records, raising over $50 million. The numbers are impressive. The lesson, though, is in how those organizations get people to care, give, and show up. It starts with storytelling that puts people, instead of institutions, at the center.
The Story Behind the Bib Number
A charity runner isn’t sending a mass email blast about quarterly impact metrics. They’re telling their friends and family why this cause matters to them, and why they’re willing to train for months and put their body through 26.2 miles for it. The pitch is personal because the commitment is personal; they fundraise thousands of dollars because they care about the mission.
We see it every year with the organizations Teak Media is proud to represent. Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Massachusetts (BBBSEM) had runners on the course this Marathon Monday, including Waltham resident Aaron Gladden. Gladden has been matched with his Little Brother, Teyvon, for more than 10 years, watching him grow from a nine-year-old into a young man and high school graduate. As an only child who could have used a big brother growing up, Gladden said he’s “fully committed to this organization and everything it stands for.” That’s a story that makes someone who has never heard of BBBSEM stop scrolling and pay attention.
Boston CASA also had runners, including Alex Castrichini, a 37-year-old from Concord who first connected with the organization through his wife’s family. One of the stories he heard at the Boston CASA Gala stuck with him: a young woman who spoke about hitting the lowest point of her life and calling the one person she trusted—her Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA). That call, she said, saved her life. Castrichini joined the board, and this year, he ran 26.2 miles to bring awareness to what foster kids face every day.
Boston Community Pediatrics (BCP) had its own doctor on the course, Dr. Jen Gill, BCP’s Medical Director and a pediatrician with more than two decades of experience. This was her third Marathon, and her training looked like what it looks like for most people with demanding jobs and New England winters. Treadmill runs. Negative-five-degree mornings in the dark. So why do it? Because for Jen, the training itself is part of the message. “Training for a marathon has to be proof of how much I believe in the mission of BCP,” she said. This is the kind of story that compels people to give.
Gladden, Castrichini, and Dr. Gill were not recruited by a PR team or handed talking points. They found a personal connection to a mission and wanted to share it. That authenticity is what earns attention and trust, and it’s the same ingredient that makes any nonprofit’s communications resonate.
Why This Matters More Than Ever
The stakes for nonprofit communicators have become considerably higher since my colleague, Sarah Zhitnik, wrote about the Marathon’s storytelling and fundraising power in this space back in 2024.
Federal funding instability is real. According to the 2025 National Survey of Nonprofit Trends and Impacts, 34% of nonprofits reported declines in federal funding, and 29% experienced delays or freezes. Foundation grant demand is surging, with 87% of foundation leaders reporting increased demand. Individual donor counts are actually declining even as total dollars rise, driven largely by bigger gifts from fewer people. Competition for attention and support is fierce. .
In that environment, storytelling is the differentiator between organizations that break through and organizations that get lost in the noise.
The Marathon charity model holds up in tough times because it was built on authentic peer-to-peer storytelling. When a friend shares a personal story about why they’re running 26.2 miles for a cause, it lands differently than a carefully segmented email from an organization asking for donations. It feels real, because it is.
The takeaway for nonprofits is straightforward: if your communications still lead with what your organization does rather than covering the people you serve or sharing why the people connected to it care, you’re missing the story that resonates. Every nonprofit has this in their orbit. The organizations breaking through in 2026 are the ones handing those people the microphone.
Community Is the Main Character
Here’s the thing about Marathon Monday that no communications strategy can manufacture: the whole city shows up.
Residents of neighborhoods along the course turn out with cowbells and handmade signs. Local business owners raise banners. Families camp out on the same corner they claim every year. The Marathon works as a storytelling engine partly because of the individual runner narratives, and partly because it is synonymous with Boston’s identity. It’s a city event that showcases athletic fortitude and also generates extraordinary charitable impact.
The marathon involves more than the runners and spectators. Volunteers play a big role. Along all 26.2 miles of the course, The Salvation Army Emergency Disaster Services (EDS) had more than 60 volunteers and six mobile canteens stationed strategically along the route, serving 5,000 meals, beverages, and snacks to the medical volunteers and first responders who kept Marathon Monday safe. This year also marked the debut of The Salvation Army’s new rapid response unit, stationed at Cleveland Circle to reach locations traditional canteens couldn’t. It’s the kind of behind-the-scenes community infrastructure that most spectators never see, and it makes the entire event possible.
The Salvation Army’s Marathon operation is a perfect example of another communications opportunity: volunteer storytelling. Their 60-plus EDS volunteers came from across Massachusetts and Northern New England to make sure the people keeping runners safe were fed and supported. That’s a compelling narrative, and one that most nonprofits overlook.
Some of your most authentic, interesting storytellers aren’t on your payroll. They’re the people who give their time, show up at events, and talk about your organization at dinner with friends. Nonprofits can benefit by capturing and amplifying the voices of the people who live their mission every day by choice, rather than because of a pay check.
For nonprofits, the lesson is this: your community is your greatest storytelling asset. The strongest narratives you’ll ever build are about the people your organization serves. The volunteer who shows up every Saturday. The family whose life changed because of your work. The local business that partners with you because they believe in what you do. Center those stories, and the support follows.
This doesn’t require a big production. A 30-second phone video of a volunteer explaining why they keep coming back. A quote from a longtime donor in your next newsletter. A social media takeover by a beneficiary. These stories break through because they’re real.
The Race Is Over. The Stories Aren’t.
Now that the confetti has been swept off Boylston Street and the last medals have been handed out, the 193 nonprofits in the Official Charity Program are reflecting on another Marathon Monday well run. BBBSEM’s runners hit the course so that kids like Teyvon have access to mentors who stick around for a decade and counting. Boston CASA’s runners brought visibility to children in foster care who need someone in their corner. Boston Community Pediatrics runners raised awareness for an organization working to close the gap between what insurance covers and what it actually costs to give a child comprehensive care. And behind it all, The Salvation Army’s canteens made sure the people keeping everyone safe didn’t go hungry.
Even though the Boston Marathon is only held once a year, the principles that make this storytelling model work (human-centered narratives, peer-to-peer advocacy, community-rooted identity, and authentic voices) can also apply to any nonprofit with a story worth telling, at any time of the year. Whether your big moment is a gala, a walk, an awareness month, or a giving day, ask yourself: Are we telling institutional or human stories? Are we putting our people front and center, or hiding behind our logo? Are we part of our community, or just in it?
One of the reasons the marathon moves people is because it gives ordinary Bostonians a reason to tell extraordinary stories. That’s a model any mission-driven organization can follow. No qualifying time required.
