Devann M. & JoAnn K.
Devann Murphy survived cancer at 11. She recalls looking out of the window of Boston Children’s Hospital and asked the nurse, “why are all those people running?” It was the Boston Marathon, she was told.
“If I survive this, I’m going to win that race someday,” 11 year old Devann told the nurse.
Devann did survive, losing some of her ability in her legs. She found adaptive sports as an adult and applied to the IM ABLE Foundation for a handcylce to train and race.
“I didn’t know it at the time, but I’d never run again. But 28 years later, almost to the day, I won the Women’s Handcycle Divsion of the 2019 Boston Marathon.“
She’s since won the New York City Marathon four times, the Chicago Marathon, the Vermont Marathon, and the Marine Corps Marathon.
She’s teaching others how to thrive.
“I never expected my life to be like this. For the longest time, I merely existed. I didn’t know what adaptive sports were, so I just tried to fit in where I could. It was like trying to fit a round peg into a square hole. For so long, I lived my life in the shadows, desparately trying to go unnoticed. But, connecting with Chris and the IM ABLE Foundation, everything changed; that’s when i learned how to shine.”
“This has always been bigger than me. It’s not about podiums, or medals or sponsorships. For me, it’s always been about being strong enough to pull myself back up when I fall. But more than that, it’s been about helping others find their shine.”
Every morning we wake up, we decide how we live our lives. We get to choose how we’re going to take on every challenge. We get to choose if we’re going to give up or get up. We only get one life – live it.”
JoAnn Kenton was sitting on the sidelines of a high school football game. A tackle crossed the sideline and multiple players landed on top of her, dislocating her hip. At the time, she considered herself an elite level athlete and was suddenly unable to compete. Instead, she saw doctor after doctor trying to figure out what to do about her leg that she was now essentially dragging around, unable to get it back to the way it was before the accident.
She tells the story about sitting on the beach, watching this man walk across the sand with a prosthetic leg. He was moving so easily; she knew in that moment what she needed to do.
She had struggled to “fix” her leg for over a decade and was done trying that route. It took a while to convince doctors to remove her leg, but they eventually agreed to do what was the first surgery of its kind. They removed her leg all the way up to her hip and attached a rod to her hip to which she clicks in a bionic leg.
She was back to being able to move again and just needed the right equipment. IM ABLE helped with that.
On October 27, 2024, at the Marine Corps Marathon, Devann edged out JoAnn and the two of them took first and second places, separated by only 38.15 seconds.
On April 21, 2025, they were both competing again in the Boston Marathon, tied for first place at mile 20 in the Women’s Handcycle division when JoAnn made her move. Over the final 6.2 miles, JoAnn held off Devann and two other women to cross the finish line in first place by 0.37 seconds to win her first Boston Marathon. Devann came in 4th place, 52 seconds behind JoAnn.
When we first met JoAnn, she had just had her surgery and was overwhelmed by the equipment, and the cost of it. She came out of that conversation with something more important than a way to acquire a bike.
She came away with hope and resolve that there was a path back to competition.
Your gifts have made it possible for us to help her navigate this new world for her, and many others. Thank you for empowering so many people to pursue their dreams and for fueling hope, resilience, compassion, and gratitude.
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Hundreds of people thank you, more are waiting.
We are here for Devann, JoAnn, and for hundreds of other families every year who are looking for an inclusive community where everybody can participate.
It isn’t possible without this community, without you. You’ve given so much to this mission and we’ve helped athletes of all abilities realize that there are no obstacles that we cannot overcome as a community.
