Help Khit Reach Her Goal
$25,000
Honor an aspiring woman in your life or help aspiring women with financial need to achieve their educational goals by making a donation towards Khit's Blessons Scholarships for Women Fundraiser.
You may donate through PayBal by clicking the yellow button below, via Chase QuickPay by sending to info@blessons.org or by mailing a check to 405 N. Wabash Ave Suite 2006 Chicago, IL 60611
Why I Run
Life will only change when you become more committed to your dreams than you are to your comfort zone. I don’t want to inspire others by being perfect. My name is Khit Masoud and I want to inspire women by how I deal with my imperfections.
I use a word called “BLESSONS”, A blesson is what happens when you see the blessing in the lesson that your challenge taught you. We all have a story, we all have our own demons, we all have our own issues and fears. Not everyone has the emotional support from their loved ones when you think you need it most. You have to learn how to survive because when you know that you are all that you have, being STRONG is the only thing you can be.
I always wanted to make a difference and teach women like my mother who I would see depressed as she raised 7 children at home as her only duty in life. I ran away from home at 16 where I was born and raised in Northern California. I took my family to court, was legally emancipated in 1998. I wanted to be free to go to college, make something of myself that wasn’t cleaning, cooking and raising children as my only options in life. As the oldest of 7, it was really hard to take this risk of never seeing or speaking to any of my family members once I brought shame to the family. By sharing my story with the world that I can leave home at 16, finish high school while working two jobs, living on my own and getting into college to make something of myself without depending on a man to support me, was one of my biggest goals.
Life’s challenges has taught me what it’s like to have slept in my car, sleep on floors at friend’s homes, to live off 29 cents hamburgers and top ramen to survive those tough lessons. After trying the first few years in college, I eventually couldn’t keep up with my grades to maintain the financial aid for school in completing my first Bachelor’s degree. Since then, I have been working towards my degree while making it through life on my own with no family support. I have always wanted to finish my college education.
I ran away from home at 16 where I was born and raised in Northern California. I took my family to court, was legally emancipated in 1998 to avoid an arranged marriage to my first cousin. At 26, 10 years after running away from home, I was diagnosed with a very rare cancer called Vulvar Cancer caused by HPV. Back then in 2006, HPV was very new. Not much research was done and the only thing we knew was that my body and my immune system couldn’t fight off these high risk cancer strands.
In 2007, I had several types of surgeries and treatments in fighting cancer. Being emancipated and by that, being disowned by my entire family, I went through cancer on my own. I have had to do what was needed in order to survive and I am not ashamed of the choices that were made to survive. That's what I call a CANCER WARRIOR. I moved to Chicago in 2007, after all my surgeries, I wanted to start over, make something of myself.
While bartending and waiting tables full time was my primary source of income most of my life, in 2012 I started volunteering at a NFP organization that provides 1-on-1 cancer support, for over 4 years. Through this organization, I learned how to make a difference by using my legs by running for charity and became the force behind building this organization’s charity running team along with enough skills and experience to create and launch my very own charity one day. Being let go in June 2016 by that organization due to budgets, became part of the LARGEST series of blessons in 2016! I learned that the power of healing by sharing my life lessons, my challenging experiences, my BLESSONS, it would not only help so many others but also help me make peace of my challenging life journey as I began to view the blessings that came from the hardships that has taught me.
The four years of being involved with that organization, taught me that I was able to make a difference for so many cancer fighters, survivors and caregivers because no one should have to face cancer on their own like I did. Those who were lucky to not go through cancer but were affected, I was able to help them as well. So why not continue to do what I love and do best!? On August 13, 2016, I launched my new not for profit organization. I wanted to provide a service that helps women like myself, with an opportunity in completing their college education that was interrupted due to life challenging lessons. Our mission is to provide educational assistance, including scholarships to women who are 25 years and older, who have suffered from cancer, mental illness, physical and emotional abuse, or women who are immigrants/first generation.
Soon after I learned that I have developed early stages of cervical cancer in early 2016, I promised myself that day that I would truly continue to LIVE LIFE TO THE FULLEST. I changed jobs, joined organizations such as the Abbott World Marathon Majors Ambassador Program and the CEM Chicago Community Ambassador Program both beginning in early 2016. I joined a sports medicine podiatry practice, The Running Institute as their Marketing Director. I decided that if I'm going to live life to the fullest, I'm going to see the world by participating in destination races while spreading awareness of my charity at the same time! I'm always trying to add new ways of reducing stress in my life because my body just doesn’t take it like it used to. I believe that stress is one of the biggest, if not THE biggest causes of cancer in our bodies. Cancer feeds off of stress so easily just like it does with sugar. I run for many things, but mostly to reduce stress while making a difference in our community. Since 2011, I have completed 100 races including (4) Bank of America Chicago Marathons, (2) TCS NYC Marathons, 2016 Sketchers LA Marathon, 2016 Boston Marathon and the 2016 BMW Berlin Marathon, while fundraising for charity. I’ve raised over $100,000 to date since!
I want to inspire and motivate all levels of runners and show them that running is FUN through all these experiences. I don’t know what will happen to me tomorrow or even today so I choose to enjoy every moment of a race and take in everything that’s around me. I even started to post on social media about what I’m grateful for during the marathon as I’m running it!! While running the 2016 Boston Marathon, I dedicated every mile of the marathon with pictures and posted to Facebook as I crossed each mile marker. It kept reminding me why I started this mission in the first place each time I wanted to give up.
Taking care of your health first is something that I have been working on for almost 10 years now. My mental health depends on the endorphins that running feeds me being a pacer for the largest marathon group training program, CES. This just takes me to another level of a RUNNER’S HIGH! I was asked to become one of the official pacers on the NIKE Pace Team for The 2016 Bank of America Chicago Marathon last October.
The only drug that I know of that cures everything in my opinion and including my cancer, is my love for the sport of running which takes me to my happy place. Staying on top of my health while battling cancer again with the help of my doctors including my Sports Medicine Foot & Ankle doctor, Dr. Chin at The Running Institute here in Chicago, is what keeps me in a positive mindset non-stop and injury free. To be able to help other runners of all levels as their pacer accomplish their goals, is one of the most rewarding feeling I have ever experienced. In honor of my 10 year CANCER WARRIOR ANNIVERSARY, I'm dedicating all my 2017 races including my 5th Abbott WMM race, Tokyo Marathon, completing my 6th Abbott WMM race in London as a Six Star Finisher and my first half distance Ironman 70.3 that is on my birthday in August, to my new not for profit organization, Blessons Scholarships for Women! Tax ID # 81-3326940. Please visit us at www.blessons.org to learn more.
Thank you for supporting our mission in empowering women through education!
Khit Masoud - 10 yr. Cancer Warrior
Founder & Executive Director of Blessons Scholarships for Women
Abbott World Marathon Majors Ambassador
CEM - Chicago Community Ambassador
For donations of in-kind, or to discuss other giving options, please email info@blessons.org. All donations to Blessons, NFP, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, are tax deductible as allowed by law.
My Races
Berlin Marathon
September 25, 2016
Chicago Marathon
October 9, 2016
NYC Marathon
November 6, 2016
Houston Half Marathon
January 15, 2017
Tokyo Marathon
February 26, 2017
London Marathon
April 23, 2017
Ragnar - Madison to Chicago
June 9, 2017
IRONMAN 70.3 STEELHEAD August 13, 2017-Bday Race!!
