Charlotte Running Club is a powerful force behind running and encouragement in Charlotte.. and for the first time in 2-1/2 years, it has a new President. Eric Smith is a committed runner who is eager to encourage others, and has also been described as a “rock star” pace runner for our Novant Health Charlotte Marathon.

With the Charlotte Marathon (and others) transitioned to virtual runs this year, he is literally “Running Around Charlotte” for his races. Eric joins us now to talk about his upcoming races and his new post.

The Novant Health Charlotte Marathon has gone virtual – here’s what you need to know!

Here’s a question we all need to hear: “How will you get moving today?” It’s a favorite question of our next guest on Running Around Charlotte. Christine Turner is a former college soccer player and now mother of 2, who trained as a mental health counselor, and is currently as a personal trainer at a company she started about 2 years ago. And as if she’s not busy enough — she also runs. Wow! We’re glad she’s here talking to us today… maybe she can share some of her energy!

We like anything that gets folks out running — and we know the transformative effect running can have on people’s lives. One place that’s absolutely apparent is with RunningWorks, a non-profit that gives Charlotte’s homeless population an avenue to take control of their lives through health and wellness. They also help their runners along that course with mental health counseling, group therapy, career development, and housing assistance. Matthew Sharp is their Chief Operating Officer, and joins us now on Running Around Charlotte.

How is your relationship with food and exercise? How are you feeling after stay at home orders that kept you out of the office or your usual social circles? Do you want to talk about it? Well Juliet Kuehnle is someone you can talk to. She’s a therapist who takes a holistic approach to helping you sort out your feelings and fears, and move forward in a positive way. She’s here today on Running Around Charlotte, to share some insights about how to deal with stress right about now.

Wanna have a good time? Then be around fun people! Or at least, watch them on Tik Tok and Instagram. Our guest today on Running Around Charlotte is THAT guy — the one everyone loves to watch dancing on Tik Tok or running the mic at Charlotte Checkers Games. And guess what? He also runs marathons and has served as one of our Novant Health Charlotte Marathon Ambassadors! Welcome, Aaron Dodge!

School is just around the corner.. and let’s face it, this won’t start as a normal school year, just like the last one didn’t finish that way. On top of classroom learning, schools are weighing a return to sports — when many athletes have been out of practice since March. Dr. Christian Turner is a pediatrician with Novant Health – with a specialty of pediatric sports medicine – to give us some great back-to-school reminders.

We have become especially aware this summer of the differences in opportunities across our city. We know going to museums or camps are good for kids, but not all kids get that kind of exposure to what’s called cultural capital. It affects education and upward mobility, something Charlotte struggles with, according to a now-well-known report putting us last among Top 50 metros when it comes to moving up in socio-economic status.

The non-profit Raise a Child of the Carolinas sets its goal of exposing kids to the kind of opportunities that are not evenly available across the city, in order to help them grow up to be responsible, engaged citizens and leaders. If you’re a casual runner or walker, you can help. Shay Hunt is the Executive Director of Raise a Child and is here to tell us how — and more importantly, why — you can do your part.

If you’ve been in Charlotte for even a few months, listening to the radio or watching local TV, you’ve likely heard an ad for one of the Keffer Auto Group’s 8 car dealerships like Hyundai, Volkswagen, or Kia. What you may not know is their namesake owner, Jim Keffer, is pretty good at getting around on foot, too — we mean, of course, running.

Jim likes training and competing in endurance sports, and in fact, is the name sponsor of our Keffer Cares Rocktoberfest Half Marathon and 5-miler, part of the Run Charlotte 6-pack of races leading up to the Novant Charlotte Marathon.

We can all use a little encouragement in our running lives, and our next guest on Running Around Charlotte has some for you. Aaron Beaver is an ultra runner who created the Suffer Club on three points: encouragement, accountability, and consistency. He’s here to encourage us now with his story.