Starters

Hopkinton Marathon Committee Selects Starters for Four Waves of 128th Boston Marathon

HOPKINTON, MA (April 8, 2024)—The Hopkinton Marathon Committee (HMC) has selected longtime HMC and Boston Marathon volunteer Jack LeDuc, retired Hopkinton Police Department officer Tom Griffin, 30 year Dell/EMC employee and Boston Marathon Volunteer, and Sharon Lisnow and Mary McQueeney, Founding Directors of the Michael Lisnow Respite Center as starters for the first, second, third and fourth waves of the 128th Boston Marathon on Monday, April 15. The Boston Athletic Association will announce the starters for earlier starts.

“This year is especially exciting to have starters with deep ties to Hopkinton and the Boston Marathon, because we’re celebrating 100 starts in Hopkinton,” said Dorothy Ferriter-Wallace, chairperson of the HMC. “The B.A.A. gives our committee the honor of selecting these starters to recognize the town of Hopkinton for its role as the stewards of the start of the Boston Marathon. These individuals all have played an important role in many successful starts of the Boston Marathon and we’re pleased to highlight their contributions.”

Wave 1, Jack LeDuc, member of Hopkinton Marathon Committee

• grew up in Hopkinton
• Boston Marathon volunteer for 43 years
• painted starting line for 37 years
• long-time announcer at Boston Marathon start
• ran the Boston Marathon 15 times from 1997 through 2011
• Veteran of U.S. Coast Guard, serving for 6 years, retiring as an Engineman Third Class

Wave 2, Tom Griffin, longtime Police Officer for Hopkinton Police Department

• raised in Natick, moved to Hopkinton in 1972
• joined HPD in 1978 as patrolman
• retired in 2016, but stayed on as special police officer, then traffic constable on Marathon day
• has staffed road blocks, worked security in center of town, and served as motorcycle escort
• “Other than being honored by such a role,” said Griffin. “What I am really looking forward to is seeing the runners cross the start line. In all my decades working this event, that is something I have never seen, except on the news after the race. I truly want to thank the marathon committee for this opportunity.”

Wave 3, Paul Fitzgerald, Dell/EMC employee involved with Boston Marathon since 1992

• Vice President of Real Estate and Facilities for the Americas, Dell
• involved with supporting the Marathon since 1992 as EMC/Dell was growing in the community
• (donating their building parking, staffing and security, traffic management, and has been a volunteer since that time). Hosts a pre-marathon law-enforcement meeting
• enjoys working with Dell to support the Lisnow Respite Center, particularly during marathon
• Of the Boston Marathon start, Fitzgerald said, “The entire day is great. Love the excitement as we have a lot of runners from Dell, seeing people and leaders from Town…..but I have always joked about firing the starting pistol!!”

Wave 4, Sharon Lisnow & Mary McQueeney, Founding Directors of Michael Lisnow Respite Center, a home away from home for children and adults with disabilities

• This is The Respite Center’s 26th year as a BAA Charity–26 years for 26 miles
• Lisnow and McQueeney have run the Boston Marathon together six times
• Lisnow calculated that the money raised for the Center through Boston Marathon runners equals 186,000 hours of services to individuals with disabilities, specifically for those who can’t afford the care otherwise
• 73 runners will run the Boston Marathon for Michael’s Miracle team, raising funds for the Respite Center
• Most of the runners on Michael’s Miracle team will start in wave 4, started by Lisnow and McQueeney. There are also 4 running who have run qualifying times
• After starting Wave 4 and cheering on all their runners, McQueeney and Lisnow will go to cheer at mile 10, then to the finish

128^th Boston Marathon

The Hopkinton Marathon Committee was established in 1979 to work in conjunction with the Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.), the organizers of the Boston Marathon, to ensure that the annual running of the race is an exciting, successful and safe event for all concerned. Committee members contribute their efforts throughout the entire year to the planning, organization, and coordination of multiple facets of the race, working to protect the best interests and welfare of the town, its residents, businesses and visitors.

2024 Start times of all waves of the 128th Boston Marathon:

2023 Starters

Wave 2, 3, and 4 STARTERS 2023

Wave 2, Joe Bennett
Hopkinton Police Chief Joe Bennett has served on the Hopkinton Marathon Committee for many years and has been working the Marathon on Patriots’ Day for almost 30 years. The Chief since 2020, Bennett previously served as Deputy Chief and started in the HPD as an officer in 1993 and has worked as a patrolman, detective, sergeant, and lieutenant, receiving numerous honors and awards from his own department, the state, and even the FBI. He earned his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Criminal Justice from Western New England College and previously worked for the Sutton and Southborough Police Departments. Bennett works closely with law enforcement officials from across the state and
nationwide to help ensure the safety of runners and townspeople at the start of the Boston Marathon.

Wave 3, Jamie Stewart
Jamie Stewart retired in September of 2022 after 36 years working for the Town of Hopkinton. He worked for the Department of Public Works. According to Mike Mansir, Hopkinton Highway Manager, “Jamie is a very talented mechanic, welder, fabricator, equipment operator and snowplow operator.” As a Public Works employee, Stewart took part in the many duties the Department has before, during, and after the Boston Marathon, including sweeping streets, cleaning the Doughboy Statue, barricading roads, and cleaning up the town at a legendary pace to allow roads to re-open.

Wave 4, Abbie Rosenberg
Abbie Rosenberg, Founder and Executive Director of Hopkinton Mental Health Collaborative, has lived in Hopkinton for 21.5 years. She founded and was director for many years of Hopkinton’s second biggest race, the Sharon Timlin Memorial 5k for ALS. The Timlin Race has raised more than 2 million dollars for ALS Research. Rosenberg, a founding member of the Hopkinton Running Club, has run the B.A.A. Half Marathon. Her son Zack Sisitsky will be running the Boston Marathon this year for the Hopkinton Emergency Fund, and Rosenberg will be starting his wave. She is especially excited to start wave 4 because of Zach and other charity runners, including those running for ALS Research and for the Mental Health Collaborative.

2022 Starters