At the height of the pandemic three years ago, Colin Corcoran and his 22-year-old daughter Delanie bonded with one another through running.
“It was something for them to do during Covid,” said Colin’s wife Barbara. “My husband has always run off and on, and Delanie being a college athlete runs as part of her training regimen.”
It’s an activity the pair still do, drawing the pair closer together with every step they take. It will continue this month when Colin and Delanie run the Falmouth Road Race in support of the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod (AFCC).
“They are really excited to run it together,” said Barbara. “And it’s really special they are able to do it for the Arts Foundation.”
Barbara, who has been a realtor with William Raveis Real Estate for the past 15 years, has a strong affinity for the work the Arts Foundation does. It started in 2021, when William Raveis signed on as the Title Sponsor for the nonprofit, a commitment it has made every year since. The firm is also sponsoring the Arts Foundation’s Falmouth Road Race team.
“I think it’s amazing what the Arts Foundation did to keep the arts alive during Covid,” said Barbara. “And I love the work they do in supporting programs like connecting people living with Parkinson’s to music so it brings them relief. The work they do is deeper than what people think it is. I love how they incorporate the arts into the entire community.”
The Corcoran’s involvement with the AFCC has allowed the family, which includes Barbara and Colin’s sons Chase, 24, and Shane, 17, who will be a senior at Sandwich High School, to appreciate the importance of the arts to our region. “Colin and Delanie are proud to be able to do this because we know how much good it gives to the community,” said Barbara. “We have all gone from the outside looking in and peering around the curtain to see what the Arts Foundation is all about to really embracing and wanting to help the arts community on the Cape as much as we can.”
Barbara, who has lived in Sandwich since 1997 – two years after she and Colin got married – has grown fond of this place she calls home. “I love everything about it – being so close to nature and being able to go to the beach whenever you want, year-round,” she said. “And to be able to live in a small community that is so full of people who help and are kind and considerate is really amazing.”
The Corcorans fall into that category of “people who help and are kind and considerate,” which Colin and Delanie will demonstrate on August 20th when they make the 7-mile trek, from Woods Hole to Falmouth Heights, all to support the Arts Foundation’s work.
While Colin has run the race before, it will mark the first time for Delanie, a server at the Mattakeese Wharf in Barnstable, and a senior-to-be at the University of New England, where she is a goalie on the hockey team and studying exercise science.
It’s a race the family has enjoyed many times before as spectators. This year, Barbara will be cheering the pair on “at the 6-mile mark. I’m an awesome cheerleader and I come up with a signature drink for the race every year,” she said. “It’s such an amazing day and amazing event, from the energy of the elite and collegiate runners to those running for important causes.”
This year, Barbara is debating between a frozen espresso martini or Cape Fear transfusion for her signature drink. When Colin and Delanie cross the finish line, she’ll raise a glass to all that the pair accomplished, starting from their earliest runs in the midst of the pandemic
Together, they’re taking meaningful steps to give back to the arts and to Cape Cod. “When you have some success, we all have to return the favor and give back,” said Barbara. “I think it is a circle and you have to keep the circle going. It is so important and one of the most important things we can do.”
To support Colin and Delanie Corcoran, visit their fundraising page here. You can donate to the Arts Foundation Road Race team here.
A special thanks to our Falmouth Road Race Sponsors William Raveis Real Estate and Puritan Cape Cod for their support of the Arts Foundation and for Standing with the Arts!