Boston Marathon 2020: Meet Julianna DiPietro of Team BHCHP
Since Juliana DiPietro started running marathons 7 years ago, participating in the Boston Marathon has been one of her dreams. Currently a graduate student at Harvard University’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Juliana resides in Boston while attending school. Originally from Davis, CA, Juliana started running when she was 12 years old for fun so she could spend time with her friends on the cross-country team.
Juliana continued to compete in high school as a cross country captain and started running marathons in college. Running for Juliana has been a way to keep her mind and body healthily balanced, as well as have a sense of community.
When Juliana learned about the opportunity to join the BHCHP 2020 Boston Marathon Team, she could not pass up the opportunity to go for it and have the chance to combine a lifelong athletic dream with fundraising for an organization that is in line with her personal and professional goals. Juliana first heard about BHCHP while working in Portland, OR at Central City Concern, an organization that provides similar services to BHCHP.
Soon after arriving in Boston to attend Harvard, Juliana was referred to BHCHP by a colleague and she has now been a volunteer since October 2019. Juliana’s passion for BHCHP’s mission is reflected in her dedication to training and fundraising for the marathon and team all while she continues to work part-time, attend school full-time and maintain her volunteer activities.
As a BHCHP volunteer, Juliana has had the opportunity to spend time with patients in the dental clinic and one of the shelter clinics. Juliana is motivated by the patient-centered care and innovative approaches for constantly improving the quality and options for care BHCHP provides, as well as the stories of the patients’ inspiring lives and the compassionate care each patient receives. Juliana hopes the BHCHP outreach experiences she has shared with her colleagues and classmates at Harvard will be able to connect two often disconnected worlds and have a positive impact on the health care system for folks experiencing homelessness.
In addition to Juliana’s running, career, volunteering and education, she enjoys reading, bouldering, backpacking and dancing. One of Juliana’s proudest moments is finishing the Phoenix Marathon in less than 4 hours! BHCHP invites you to join Juliana’s cheering squad of family, friends and classmates on the Boston Marathon route to cheer the BHCHP team on in 2020!
If you can’t make it to the Marathon, consider contributing to Juliana’s fundraising campaign!
