That was his late wife's thing. Laura, who died last July, loved to
run. The Yohos were physical fitness fanatics, but Nate prefers the gym
to the track.
Yet Nate Yoho has been running for a long time now.
He started running toward Laura the day they met back in 2007, when they
were both trainers at a Des Moines gym.
They sprinted toward a
wedding with a proposal that was so touching a local jewelry store made a
re-enacted video of it into a commercial.
They ran even harder
after they learned Laura had brain cancer, to stay fit, to fight the
disease ? and, in a way, to move toward a happily-ever-after finish line
they couldn't reach together.
Laura died, but Nate kept
running. This time it was for Caralyn, his and Laura's daughter born by
surrogate months after Laura's death.
As any parent of a newborn
knows, there's a lot of running involved. Yoho has tended to his
daughter ? with help ? while starting his own gym.
And now Yoho is running the old-fashioned way: in a race for a cause.
He'll participate in the Head for the Cure 5K on Sunday, a run to raise money for brain cancer research and treatment.
"It's
a way to keep Laura's memory alive," said Yoho, 31. "She was the runner
in the family. Brain cancer is the deadliest cancer, but it's so
underfunded. If I can do a little bit to help with that, I'm happy."
Head
for the Cure was established by Matt Anthony of Kansas City, Mo., to
honor his brother Chris Anthony, who died of a brain tumor in 2003.
Chris Anthony was 37.
The race began in 2003 and raised $10,000
for brain cancer and tumor research. The event expanded to other markets
and has raised more than $400,000 to benefit the Brain Tumor Trials
Collaborative at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in
Houston.
The event reaches Des Moines for the first time Sunday.
Matt Anthony will be in the field, running for his brother and meeting
others who have survived brain cancer or tumors ? or those who have lost
loved ones to the disease.
He knows the Yohos' story well.
"What
makes these races worth it is the sense of community," Matt Anthony
said. "Of course you want to raise money for the cause, but you meet
people like Nate and you learn about their stories. You understand how
widespread this problem is, how much suffering is out there and how hard
we need to work to put a stop to it."
The Yohos' story has
inspired a lot of people in Iowa and beyond. Why not? It has all the
makings of a classic tear-jerker novel or movie.
Nate Yoho met Laura
Brammeier in 2007 at Aspen Athletic Club on Merle Hay Road. Laura was
beautiful, with long brown hair, focused eyes and a lithe body from a
lifetime of working out in the gym. Nate was an athletic Adonis, a
former outfielder in the Milwaukee Brewers organization.
They
looked like a couple right out of a fairy tale. When Nate decided to
propose in 2010, he dreamed up a masterpiece worthy of a storybook. The
couple took a run together. They walked the last quarter mile.
Laura
spotted a painting on a tree along their route. The artwork was done by
a friend. She pulled it down. On the back was a ring in a gold box. She
cried as she said yes. They later re-enacted the story in a video that
became an ad for Josephs jewelers.
But tumors were growing in
Laura's brain. She passed out at work. She had surgery to remove the
tumors. The couple married in 2011. They adopted two cats, Lou and
Oliver. But the tumors came back. And the doctors said there was nothing
they could do.
Laura and Nate asked Laura's lifelong friend, Kara
Stetson, if she would be a surrogate mother for their child. Stetson, a
married mother of two, agreed.
Laura fought as long as she could to stay alive, to meet her daughter, Caralyn, but the cancer was too strong. She died July 23.
Caralyn
was born Nov. 26. The Yohos' story, first told after Laura's death and
again after Caralyn was born, put the very private Nate Yoho at the
center of attention.
The story went viral. Hollywood called. Somebody wanted to make a movie. But Yoho declined.
"I
just need the time to live my life," he said. "It was very strange.
People were telling us how touched and inspired they were by this story,
and I realized they were talking about my life. It was strange. I
needed to get some distance from that."
Instead of fortune and
glory, Yoho sought stability and quiet for himself and his daughter. He
started a home training business. Then he started his own gym, CrossFit
on Merle Hay Road in Des Moines.
It's a lot to manage, but Yoho handles it with grace, one stride at a time.
Life,
the adage goes, is a marathon rather than a sprint. But regardless of
speed, Nate Yoho ? widower, single father, business owner and fitness
guru ? knows only one direction to travel: forward.
Link
run. The Yohos were physical fitness fanatics, but Nate prefers the gym
to the track.
Yet Nate Yoho has been running for a long time now.
He started running toward Laura the day they met back in 2007, when they
were both trainers at a Des Moines gym.
They sprinted toward a
wedding with a proposal that was so touching a local jewelry store made a
re-enacted video of it into a commercial.
They ran even harder
after they learned Laura had brain cancer, to stay fit, to fight the
disease ? and, in a way, to move toward a happily-ever-after finish line
they couldn't reach together.
Laura died, but Nate kept
running. This time it was for Caralyn, his and Laura's daughter born by
surrogate months after Laura's death.
As any parent of a newborn
knows, there's a lot of running involved. Yoho has tended to his
daughter ? with help ? while starting his own gym.
And now Yoho is running the old-fashioned way: in a race for a cause.
He'll participate in the Head for the Cure 5K on Sunday, a run to raise money for brain cancer research and treatment.
"It's
a way to keep Laura's memory alive," said Yoho, 31. "She was the runner
in the family. Brain cancer is the deadliest cancer, but it's so
underfunded. If I can do a little bit to help with that, I'm happy."
Head
for the Cure was established by Matt Anthony of Kansas City, Mo., to
honor his brother Chris Anthony, who died of a brain tumor in 2003.
Chris Anthony was 37.
The race began in 2003 and raised $10,000
for brain cancer and tumor research. The event expanded to other markets
and has raised more than $400,000 to benefit the Brain Tumor Trials
Collaborative at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in
Houston.
The event reaches Des Moines for the first time Sunday.
Matt Anthony will be in the field, running for his brother and meeting
others who have survived brain cancer or tumors ? or those who have lost
loved ones to the disease.
He knows the Yohos' story well.
"What
makes these races worth it is the sense of community," Matt Anthony
said. "Of course you want to raise money for the cause, but you meet
people like Nate and you learn about their stories. You understand how
widespread this problem is, how much suffering is out there and how hard
we need to work to put a stop to it."
The Yohos' story has
inspired a lot of people in Iowa and beyond. Why not? It has all the
makings of a classic tear-jerker novel or movie.
Nate Yoho met Laura
Brammeier in 2007 at Aspen Athletic Club on Merle Hay Road. Laura was
beautiful, with long brown hair, focused eyes and a lithe body from a
lifetime of working out in the gym. Nate was an athletic Adonis, a
former outfielder in the Milwaukee Brewers organization.
They
looked like a couple right out of a fairy tale. When Nate decided to
propose in 2010, he dreamed up a masterpiece worthy of a storybook. The
couple took a run together. They walked the last quarter mile.
Laura
spotted a painting on a tree along their route. The artwork was done by
a friend. She pulled it down. On the back was a ring in a gold box. She
cried as she said yes. They later re-enacted the story in a video that
became an ad for Josephs jewelers.
But tumors were growing in
Laura's brain. She passed out at work. She had surgery to remove the
tumors. The couple married in 2011. They adopted two cats, Lou and
Oliver. But the tumors came back. And the doctors said there was nothing
they could do.
Laura and Nate asked Laura's lifelong friend, Kara
Stetson, if she would be a surrogate mother for their child. Stetson, a
married mother of two, agreed.
Laura fought as long as she could to stay alive, to meet her daughter, Caralyn, but the cancer was too strong. She died July 23.
Caralyn
was born Nov. 26. The Yohos' story, first told after Laura's death and
again after Caralyn was born, put the very private Nate Yoho at the
center of attention.
The story went viral. Hollywood called. Somebody wanted to make a movie. But Yoho declined.
"I
just need the time to live my life," he said. "It was very strange.
People were telling us how touched and inspired they were by this story,
and I realized they were talking about my life. It was strange. I
needed to get some distance from that."
Instead of fortune and
glory, Yoho sought stability and quiet for himself and his daughter. He
started a home training business. Then he started his own gym, CrossFit
on Merle Hay Road in Des Moines.
It's a lot to manage, but Yoho handles it with grace, one stride at a time.
Life,
the adage goes, is a marathon rather than a sprint. But regardless of
speed, Nate Yoho ? widower, single father, business owner and fitness
guru ? knows only one direction to travel: forward.
Link
