When Brighton resident Rachel Doucette sets foot on the Boston Marathon route Monday, she’ll be running for two.
Her 26.2 miles will honor her fiancé, Ted Hart, who is a permanently and totally disabled Coast Guard veteran.
The race will also be a milestone representing how far she’s come in her own journey. Over the last several years, Doucette, 27, has lost approximately 170 pounds.
“When I cross the finish line, I just think it will be a symbol of everything Ted and I have overcome and what we are fighting for,” she told MassLive.
Doucette, who is originally from Rhode Island and works as an engineer, is raising funds for the Gillian Reny Stepping Strong Center for Trauma Innovation at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. The center works to advance trauma care and research for military personnel and civilians, and was born out of the devastating events of the 2013 Boston Marathon.
Rachel Doucette has taken up competitive running since losing approximately 170 pounds. She is running the 2025 Boston Marathon.Courtesy
It’s a cause that is near and dear to Doucette’s heart, given all that her fiancé endured during his deployments, and now in his daily life after. She referenced “several pages” worth of ailments he grapples with.
Hart, a petty officer second class now pursuing a master’s degree at Northeastern University, sustained serious injuries between 2016 and 2023 while on active duty, including a stab wound, broken bones, torn rotator cuffs, chemical burns from firefighting agents and long-term exposure to toxic substances. He’s part of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs burn pit registry and covered under the PACT Act.
When Hart was recently called for jury duty, he was ultimately excused by the judge because the chairs would be too uncomfortable for him to sit in for long periods of time.
“It’s really cool to see Rachel do something that, for me, would be against medical orders,” Hart said. “She is highlighting that vets don’t come back the same physically or mentally.”
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Raising awareness for veteran trauma
This is Doucette’s first Boston Marathon, but her second marathon race — she ran Chicago last fall.
She called Boston “the” marathon, and it being in her backyard makes it even more special. She’s looking forward to everything the experience will represent.
“I’m really just doing this for me and Ted and the veteran community as a whole,” Doucette said. “Ted’s courage and the challenges we’ve faced together inspire me every day, and running the Boston Marathon is my tribute to him and a testament to both of our shared strength.”
Doucette described the enormous lengths Hart goes to in order to stay healthy — acupuncture, physical therapy, regular appointments at the Veterans Administration. He recently had surgery on his nose due to the effects of toxic chemical exposure.
“I think this is something he would have jumped at the chance to do in a past life,” she said. “So it means a lot to me to be able to do this for us, and to be able to support a cause that cares so much about the traumatic injuries of our veterans.”
The 2025 Stepping Strong Marathon Team consists of 153 runners. Since 2014, the team has raised more than $14 million to support the center at Brigham and Women’s.
Dr. Eric Goralnick, civilian military advisor at the Gillian Reny Stepping Strong Center for Trauma Innovation, applauded runners helping to move the needle through their fundraising effort. Physical trauma is the No. 1 cause of death for people under 45 in the U.S., he said.
Every hour, 26 people die from a traumatic injury.
“It’s something that in many cases is preventable, and so that’s our goal, zero preventable deaths from trauma,” Goralnick said.
One of the key pillars of the Stepping Strong Center, he said, is the military/civilian translation. Much of what is learned about bleeding control in the military can be relayed to the civilian community, ultimately empowering average people to step in if tragedy strikes — just as they did in 2013 when bombs went off at the Boston Marathon finish line.
In the case of Gillian Reny, a bombing survivor who was watching the race, a responder who provided care for her was an Army veteran, Goralnick said. She and her family ultimately started the Stepping Strong Center.
A Navy veteran himself, Goralnick said the center previously worked with Gillette Stadium to become the first “stop the bleed” stadium in the world, training more than 500 staff members and installing bleeding kits.
Doucette’s participation on the Stepping Strong team is pulling back a curtain on post-deployment life, Hart said.
“The military has a great PR and marketing team, and they get you in there,” he said. “But they don’t really tell you what happens afterwards. We want people to have a better picture of what it is, not just a recruiter’s slogan.”
A health and fitness journey
Equally important to the cause she’s representing on Marathon Day is Doucette’s personal health and fitness journey that got her there.
At 19, she weighed around 350 pounds and was facing health issues such as pre-diabetes and high cholesterol and blood sugar.
“I really took a look at myself and said, ‘This isn’t the life I want for myself,’” Doucette said. “I started out just by walking. The first time I went for a walk, I couldn’t make a mile. Then I was walking 10 miles a day outside.”
Rachel Doucette poses for a picture with her fiancé Ted Hart after completing the Chicago Marathon.Courtesy
She watched YouTube workout videos and taught herself how to use a gym. She recalled the first time she ran was on a treadmill at an Orange Theory fitness class.
Doucette started running half marathons with friends about two years ago and “got the bug,” leading her to sign up for the Chicago Marathon last fall.
Now she’s ready for Boston.
“The training has gone well,” she said. “I feel good, I feel ready. I feel ready to take it on.”
