Students show spirit, support community at 2015 Boston Marathon

[mediagrid cat=”20369″]

Despite overcast skies and rain throughout the day, Boston University students gathered Monday to watch the 2015 Boston Marathon as runners passed through parts of BU’s campus en route to the finish line.

Spectators held homemade signs and cheered on the more than 30,000 runners from along Beacon Street near BU’s South Campus and Commonwealth Avenue in Kenmore Square.

Sara Engelsman, a senior in the College of Communication, said participating in the Boston Marathon is one of her goals as a runner and seeing others with the same ambition is exciting.

“It’s a good thing to be a Bostonian at this time,” she said. “It’s just exciting to cheer everyone on and see other people’s dreams coming true today. It’s just a good thing for the city of Boston.”

Samuel Polino, a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences, said the marathon isn’t just about the people running it, but also about what it means to come together as a community.

“It’s so much bigger than yourself when you come here,” he said. “It’s about coming together as a city and seeing what the Boston Strong community has done. It’s really cool.”

Kathryn Topalis, a senior in CAS who attended the marathon with Polino, said the best part of the race is the happiness that brings the city together.

“This is our fourth [marathon]. I just love being our here and watching,” she said. “First of all, you get to see the elite runners, which is great, but then you also get to see the six-hour runners at the end. Everyone’s just so happy to be in Boston and cheering everyone on. It’s just a great motivating experience.”

Topalis said that since the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings, people have gained a deeper understanding of what the marathon means.

“It’s even more of a Boston event than ever. Everyone is really realizing how important it is to the city,” she said. “Yeah, it’s an international event, but also it’s so much about everyone coming together and cheering on the runners and being a part of the experience as a whole. It’s more intense and more meaningful than it ever was.”

Catherine Martin, a freshman in COM, said the sense of unity the marathon evokes is inspiring.

“There’s a lot of things where you can be segregated and go into different groups, but this [marathon], everybody can share a common support,” she said.

Martin, who volunteered at a hydration station with her residence hall floor at the 24-mile marker, said seeing the runners’ stamina encourages her to run the marathon herself at some point before she graduates.

“It was just really inspiring to see them go 24 miles,” she said. “Twenty-four miles is so far, and they have two more miles left. It’s just ridiculous. It just gives me hope to say ‘Damn, I can do that.’”

Lauren Pauplis, a senior in CAS from Massachusetts, said the day of the marathon is a great day to celebrate and have fun with friends.

“When I was at home, I didn’t even know the marathon was going on. Once I moved to Boston, it was the big deal,” she said. “What makes the marathon great is it’s just the freedom involved with it. We go out, meet a lot of people and everyone just celebrates and doesn’t care [where anyone else is from].”

Benjamin Coleman, a junior in CAS, said that although there was a higher security presence and the weather was not ideal, the marathon still maintains steadfast support from the Boston community.

“The first marathon I watched was the ‘Boston bombing.’ It was very hard,” he said. “Last year, I wasn’t really feeling like coming out. This year is affected by the weather, but at the same time, the spirit hasn’t really changed since the beginning.”

Mark Reczek, a sophomore in the Questrom School of Business, said the city’s marathon spirit is unique.

“I don’t think anywhere else does a city come out to support a marathon,” he said. “To see people running like this, it’s amazing. I have complete trust in the police forces of the cities participating in the marathon. It’s amazing to see them keep this event safe and enjoyable for the rest of the public. We’re seeing the best of the best.”

J.D. Capelouto contributed to the reporting of this article.