By STEVE MAZZONE

Sports Writer

BURRILLVILLE - Her name is Emma. There’s no need for a last name. 
Burrillville’s Katy Miller met the determined 15-year-old girl this past summer while working at The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp in Ashford, Conn. Founded by late silver screen legend Paul Newman, the worldwide camp caters to chronically or life-threatening ill children between the ages of 7 and 15, offering a wide range of activities.
On this particular day, Miller had the chance to witness the inner drive of Emma. The young teenager, who had a brain tumor removed, had difficulty walking and her speech was often slurred due to the extensive surgery. But Emma, nonetheless, made her way over to the adventure program area of the camp with a goal to climb the 35-foot rock wall, a featured attraction for the older youths.
“She was so determined to do the wall,” Miller recalled. “At first, we were a little unsure about it. Her balance was not very good. But once we put the harness on, she made it to the top of the wall.”
It’s children such as Emma from the camp, who despite their adverse circumstances have found a way to accomplish their goals, that has inspired Miller to tackle a monstrous one of her own.

On Patriots’ Day, April 20, she will join the thousands of other runners at the starting line in Hopkinton for the 113th edition of the Boston Marathon.  The 23-year-old Miller, a senior at Harvard College and a former salutatorian from Burrillville High, will be competing for Team Hole in the Wall. She’ll have two goals in mind when she begins her journey.  The first is to make it to the finish of the grueling 26.2-mile race. The second, and more important, is to raise money so that people like Emma can have the opportunity to enjoy the specialized camp.
“I’ve always been really active and always wanted to run a marathon, but I’ve never had a charity that I was particular tied to,” Miller said. “Once I worked at (Hole in the Wall), I just knew.”
Miller will be one of 61 runners for Team Hole in the Wall that will make the trek to Boston for the historic race. Participants in the program are asked to raise $3,000, the cost of sending one child to a week at the camp. All children attend the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp free of charge through various fund-raising efforts.
So far, Miller is on pace to reach her goal. She currently has raised more than $1,000.
“I’m feeling really confident about it,” she said. “If people could see these children, there’s no way they could say no.”
Miller, who will graduate this May from Harvard with a degree in Anthropology and a minor in Health Care Policies, was drawn to the camp by its cause. Before going into the “real world,” she wanted to do something that she was passionate about and also felt was rewarding. Although she did get paid, it was the experience of working with the less fortunate that drew her to Newman’s camp.
“I was going into the job search knowing that it was my last summer (before I graduate),” she said. “I wanted to do something substantial that would involve giving back to the community. I wanted to go out with a bang. I knew that it would be the last time I could just do charity work. I’m really glad I did it.”
At the camp, Miller was among the staff that worked in the adventure program area, a place she saw countless determined, young children ignore their fears and overcome their physical limitations. Emma was just one of the many inspiring youths she witnessed on a daily basis.
There were others like Jacob. He was an eight-year-old child, who had a brain tumor and was still undergoing chemotherapy.
“He was a sweet kid. He reminded me a lot of my little brother,” Miller said. “I remember one time he made a wood-burning sign for his 15-year-old sister. It said, ‘The Bestest Sister’s Ever Room.’ I had to take a picture of it. It was so sweet. He was such a happy kid, a typical little boy, very independent. He couldn’t do a lot of things on his own at the camp, but he did maintain some level of independence in every other aspect of his life.”

WHEN MILLER COMPETES at Boston the third Monday in April, it will be her first attempt at the marathon distance. She’s not unfamiliar to running, though.
While a student-athlete at Burrillville, Miller competed in outdoor track her senior year. She also participated in soccer, softball and was on the Broncos’ first girls’ ice hockey team. In track, where she specialized in the longer distances, she was an average runner, generally running in the 13-14 minute range for the 3,000 meters and about six minutes for the 1,500.
“I realized (late) that I like to run,” she said. “I liked it a lot.”
In preparation for the race, Miller will be assigned a running coach that’s provided by Team Hole in the Wall, who will outline an extensive training program.  Miller, who has run no longer than 10 miles, which she did in high school, is currently averaging about three miles a day. She knows within the next month or so that mileage will jump considerably. Miller’s also not basing a successful race by how fast she can get from Point A to Point B.
“I’m running to finish,” she said. “I’m not running for time.”
Whether you’re running to just finish or for a time, Boston is certainly one of those courses that can humble even the fittest marathoner. Although it begins with a fast, downhill start that winds through the towns of Hopkinton, Framingham and Ashland, the point-to-point course does eventually test a runners mental and physical strength with its gradual increase in elevation, including the challenging, four-mile stretch in Newton, commonly referred to as “Heartbreak Hill.”
Miller admits she’ll have quite a bit of butterflies on race day, but she also knows she’ll have plenty of motivation to get to the finish. She has a summer’s worth of strong-minded, young children that will push her along. When she hits those rough spots, which are bound to occur, children like Emma and Jacob will be on her mind and getting her past the obstacles.
“I know I’ll be nervous, considering it’s my first marathon,” she said. “But I have a resource of memories to look to and it will definitely get me through it.”
What will her thoughts be when she rounds the final turn on Boylston Street and reaches that eventual goal?
“It will be surreal,” Miller said. “I have been thinking of this for a long time. I can imagine there will be a sense of disbelief. Of course, I’ll also be thinking of the kids and knowing that a child will go to camp because of the money I raised and other people’s generous support. It will be a real gratifying experience.”
For one special child, it will also bring Christmas a little earlier next year.

***
If you’re interested in sponsoring Miller in this worthwhile endeavor, there’s a few different ways it can be done. The easiest is to pay by credit card and go online at teamholeinthewall.org. Once on the site, click the “Sponsor a Team Participant” box on the right and then click on ‘Boston Marathon’ and enter the name Katherine Miller in the participant box. Donations can also be made by sending a check, payable to The Hole in the Wall Gang Fund, to Miller at 474 Winthrop Mail Center, Harvard College, Cambridge, MA 02138…There are presently more than a dozen Hole in the Wall Gang Camps in the world, including sites in Hungary, France, Italy, United Kingdom and Israel. According to its website, the camps have “serviced more than 135,000 campers with more than 150 specific medical conditions from 50 states and 39 countries.”  The Ashford camp was the first to be constructed. “There are a lot of dedicated people that keep it running,” Miller said. “It’s great. It has a really impressive infirmary with doctors and nurses around the clock.”