"The longer I run, the smaller my problems become..."

For the last few months, a group of 37 wives at Forts Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield in Georgia have been training to run the 23rd annual Army Ten-Miler in honor of their deployed husbands of the 3rd Infantry Division. For some of these ladies, it is their third deployment with which they have had to cope.

The Army Ten-Miler provides a goal for these women - that not only honors their husbands' call to duty but allows them to support one another, get in shape and, for some, run a distance they had not even thought about doing before. The group tries to get together monthly for larger practices with smaller groups getting together more regularly. According to group member Gabrielle Winton, most of the runners are doing this more for the camaraderie of the event, the idea of representing Army wives in a positive light, and to stay focused on positive things while their husbands are deployed. Some are doing it because their husband did not think they could run the distance - and, according to them, those are the ones to watch out for on race day as they are determined to get to that finish line fast!

"I believe we represent the families of deployed soldiers and the spirit of Army families everywhere in that our running is one of the many ways we carry on and don't quit while our loved ones are gone. Running the Army Ten-Miler as a group shows solidarity, and a desire to keep physically healthy. But more than the physical benefits of running, we all enjoy the emotional benefits."

Group members support one another. "When we're running with friends, laughing and talking through problems, things just seem better. We have a saying that 'the longer I run, the smaller my problems become'- it is so true!" says Gabrielle Winton. Gabrielle's husband Lt. Col. Doug Winton is deployed in Iraq for the second time. "I think it's important to have groups like ours out there so that people don't forget that for every soldier serving, there is a family he or she left behind. Those families are making a huge sacrifice too and we're just as proud to do it."

Runners can cheer for the 37 wives of the 3rd Infantry Division on race day.

For more information, visit www.armytenmiler.com.