As cheers explode around them, tears drift down the face of Jamie and Luke Shinneman. The father and son ran as one through the streets of New York for 26.2 miles, finishing together with their arms raised and faces bearing infectious smiles. Crossing the line just ahead of the duo is Amy Shinneman, wife of Jamie and mother of Luke. But here’s what makes it so interesting: Despite not being able to run on her own, Amy had the fastest finishing time of any Shinneman that day.
In 2018, Amy was diagnosed with Bethlem Myopathy, a rare form of Muscular Dystrophy (MD). Even though she receives help with her daily activities from her husband and two sons, Amy is still a marathoner–she just races a little differently. For the New York Marathon, Jamie and Luke, her eldest son and 2022 NHS graduate, pushed Amy for every inch of the 26.2 miles completed that day.
“(Finishing a marathon) is very exciting, it’s a rush of adrenaline for sure. When you’re finishing with a lot of other people, there’s a lot of emotion,” Amy said. “Finishing with Jamie is certainly an emotional thing for the both of us, he was excited to push me across the finish line.”
The New York race isn’t the only time Amy has narrowly bested her husband in a marathon. In fact they’ve raced five together including four of the Abbott world major marathons. The couple spends countless hours training and travels thousands of miles running, all to compete under the name of the charity they’ve created for MD awareness, Humbly Courageous.
“Humbly Courageous was something that I started four years ago. The purpose behind why I’ve chosen that name was that I have lived with muscular dystrophy my whole life,” Amy said. “People look at you differently, it is definitely hard. I’ve tried my whole life to go and be humble in a courageous way.”
In 2019, the pair was able to complete their first 26.2 mile race together in Chicago. It was there where they initially trained with the duo bike, a mechanism that allowed Jamie to be able to push Amy through the race.
“Training for Chicago was definitely a learning experience for the both of us. I had never been on runs that long, and he had, and it was a lot of him teaching me what those training runs were like,” Amy said.
Despite the challenges, the Shinnemans would complete Chicago and shortly thereafter check off the other two world marathons in the United States, Boston and New York. Luke would join them for their 2021 race in New York adding an additional level of emotion to the experience.
“Lots of tears when you’re doing something like that.” Jamie said. “In 2021, when we did New York with Luke, our arms were in the air and Luke gave her a big hug afterwards. It was very emotional. Doing it together as a team means so much more.”
Running is a family experience in the Shinneman household. Jamie and Amy’s younger son, NHS senior Jack Shinneman, has carved out a running legacy of his own. Jack runs cross country as well as track and field for Noblesville—Most recently, Jack represented the Millers in the Nike Cross Country Regional Championship. Despite his individual successes, he looks forward to being with his parents in their pursuit for all the world marathon majors.
“Ever since they did their first marathon, I’ve wanted to do one with them. I’m so inspired by seeing them finish their races. To do one with my family would be the best experience of my life,” Jack said.
For Jamie, his love for running blossomed alongside his sons. As a soccer player in high school, long distance events such as the marathon was not in his plans. He says the birth of his sons, alongside Amy’s willingness to take on a challenge, is what has driven him to become an elite marathon runner.
“I’ve loved being a part of this as a dad, having the opportunity to do something that [my sons] love to do,” Jamie said. “To be able to involve Amy in a sport she never thought she’d be able to compete in is too hard to explain what it feels like. It’s amazing to be able to do this as a family.”
In 2022, the Shinnemans stayed local, completing the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon in November. Running to raise awareness for Humbly Courageous, the family was able to pull together a community of more than 50 local runners, of all ages and skill levels. Numerous NHS athletes joined in on the cause, in support for their teammates’ mother.
“It was awesome to see. Seeing my friends understanding what my parents are trying to do, and going out there, giving it all for the cause, I couldn’t ask for anything else,” Jack said.
This year, the two tackled one of their biggest goals: finishing a marathon in a different country. At the Berlin marathon, Jamie finished with a time of 3 hours and 24 minutes—with Amy, as always, just a second faster.
For the boys of the Shinneman family, Amy serves as an inspiration. They find that sometimes while running, the mind needs a role model for how to persevere when met with adversity. The Shinnemans say they’ve found that in their wife and mother.
“She does a marathon every single day. Getting out of bed, putting her feet on the ground, and taking one step in front of the other,” Jamie said. “She’s inspirational in everything that she does. I couldn’t lift her up high enough for people to see what she can do.”
The Chicago Marathon is widely considered the fastest major world marathon. Despite being the first marathon Jamie and Amy completed together they set their personal record on this course.
