Volunteer Legends: The Dynamic Duo of Maureen Pollack & Judy Brower
Story by: Miles Dwyer / Photo 1 by: Denise Silfee, Photo 2 by: Rian Yamasaki, Photo 3 by: Ellen Poulsen.
EUGENE, Ore. — A marathon is officially 26.2 miles, but marathon participants know that each race is much longer than that. The number 26.2 doesn’t consider the weeks, months, or years a runner must invest before they ever reach the starting line. It also doesn’t consider the selfless crew of volunteers who hold the marathon together.
Maureen Pollock and Judy Brower have both volunteered with the Eugene Marathon for close to two decades. Pollock was a runner for most of her life, racing in more than 100 marathons around the world, and sought to stay connected with running after an ankle injury forced her to stop moving so fast herself. Brower never had much interest in running, but she feels a strong passion to help the community she’s called home since she was born, and its rich running culture.
Over their many years volunteering for different organizations and events across Eugene, the Eugene Marathon has become both retirees’ favorite channel for engaging with their community.
"It's not just about runners, running, or being a Steve Prefontaine runner,” said Pollock, on why she finds working the marathon so fulfilling. “It's about getting outside and starting. Just getting out and doing something."
In the days leading up to the race, Pollock and Brower work the Eugene Marathon Health & Wellness Expo at the Graduate Hotel in downtown Eugene. Above all else, the expo is where runners can pick up their race bibs, shirts and other materials. It seems like a simple job, but with over 10,000 runners needing to pick up their materials in the two days before the race, the bib-pickup is a zoo, run mostly by a small team of volunteers.
Pollock captains this bib-pickup team, and Brower runs volunteer check-in. Frequently, other volunteers will approach Pollock or Brower with a problem, knowing they will have the solution.
Through the chaos of the expo, the two perfectly balance efficiency and empathy, working towards the most effective solution with smiles on their faces.
"Maureen handles all the bib pick-up volunteers at the expo, which is a huge load off the staff,” said Courtney Heily, the marathon’s Executive Race Director. “She trains them so well, so that they can do their job really well; and everyone from the runners, to our staff, to the volunteers, are happier because of Maureen.”
At the expo from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on the Friday and Saturday before race day, the pair will see thousands of faces. Some are runners, many are not. All of them are tied together by a collective sense of unity and determination, as well as an appreciation for humanity’s simplest movement.
"It seems like everybody either runs, they have a friend that runs, or they admire runners,” said Brower on the unique culture of running in Eugene. “There's no way of not being connected to running."
On race day, Pollock and Brower will trade the Graduate Hotel ballroom for the upper wings of Hayward Field, the University of Oregon’s iconic track and field stadium, and the finish line for the Eugene Marathon each year. From there, Pollock, Brower, marathon staff, and other volunteers form command central for the race, coordinating things like making sure over 1500 volunteers are guided and prepared to fill water bottles, stuff finisher bags, hand out medals, organize gear check bags, and so much more.
It’s a hectic day, even before sunrise, but every once in a while, the crew has the chance to pause and enjoy the moment.
“We're at the south end of the stadium, and we look straight out toward the north end, so we see [the runners] come in the gate and we can see them finish,” said Pollock.
The marathon has changed a great deal since Pollock and Brower first started volunteering in the early 2000s (neither can remember the exact year they started). The race has added thousands of runners since its inaugural year in 2007, the course has shifted from year-to-year, and the city they both call home has changed a great deal as well. A constant throughout it all has been their appreciation of the Eugene Marathon and the community they find in it.
"This is going to be my last year of volunteering, and I really want to thank all the staff for the way they've treated the volunteers over the years,” said Brower. “I feel like they’re all part of my family, and I'm gonna miss them."