Nicole Leman Virtual Run Facebook Event
LONGVIEW, Texas - In honor of the late Nicole Leman, friends and family have set up the Nicole Leman Virtual run to take place December 9-15 to memorialize Nicole's passion for running and spreading the word of God throughout the world.
The virtual run allows for anyone who wishes to participate and is organized during the week of Nicole's passing as a way for Nicole's classmates, teammates, family and friends to designate time in remembering her and her love for running together.
Those who wish to donate in remembrance of Nicole's legacy may do so to the Nicole Leman Endowment at LeTourneau University (PO Box 7001, Longview, TX 75607-7001) with donations being used for assistive technology, student missions, and athletics support or the Nicole Leman Scholarship at Grace Christian School (12407 Pintail St, Anchorage, AK 99516,
https://payment.gracechristianalaska.org/give-to-grace/).
Leman was a three-year member of the LeTourneau University women's cross country team from 2010-12, and earned her bachelor's degree in kinesiology in 2013. Nicole tragically passed on December 9, 2015 from a fall while hiking in a mountainous region and traversing the face of a challenging slope in Rabbit Pass at Matukituki Waterfall near Wanaka, New Zealand. She was the youngest child of former Alaska Lieutenant Governor Loren Leman and his wife Carolyn.
The Anchorage, Alaska native and 2009 graduate of Grace Christian School originally came to LETU to play volleyball before joining the cross-country team prior to the 2010 season. In her first season in 2010, she made an immediate impact with a sixth-place finish at the ASC Championships and made her first of three trips to the NCAA South/Southeast Regional Championship meet. By her senior season, Leman became the first runner in school history to win the individual title at the ASC Championships and went on to finish 10th at the NCAA South/Southeast Regional Championship meet. The 10th-place finish secured her a spot at the 2012 NCAA Cross Country Championships, where she finished 143rd. Leman is the only runner in program history to represent LETU at the NCAA Championships and is only the second YellowJacket in school history to ever reach nationals as an individual, joining Leslie Lee of women's golf in 2010. In the spring of 2013, she was named the LeTourneau University Female Athlete of the Year as well as the Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
Not only was she a standout on the cross-country team, Leman was an active volunteer in many community engagement activities throughout her time at LeTourneau. In addition, Nicole served on student missions to Mexico, Utah and Austria and researched wheelchair design for third world use and went on a mission trip to Kenya to confirm findings.
After returning home, Nicole worked as a personal trainer at the Alaska Club, coach, aide for people with disabilities, and counselor at the Luis Palau Love Alaska Festival in Anchorage and Tanalian Bible Camp on Lake Clark. She ran in several Anchorage community races, the Lost Lake Run, and an ultra-marathon (50 miles) through the mountains from Cooper Landing to Hope. She loved backpacking in the Chugach Mountains, biking, berry picking, gardening, baking, and working at the family fish camp.
Nicole planned her New Zealand trip in detail and spent a year there, hiked nearly every trail, covered 2,000 miles, stayed in more than 200 huts (cabins), and worked on organic farms in exchange for room and board. Before leaving Alaska, she had said, "…I believe God is using my gifts and talents through this journey. He is leading me, using me as a tool in His kingdom." Since her death, hundreds of Facebook posts, telephone calls, and media coverage attest to her impact. The owner of a farm near Otaki wrote, "My wife and I have hosted hundreds of young people at our property during the past 15 years. Nicole Leman is the most special we have ever had. Her generosity, kindness, gentleness, and work ethic can be summed up in one word—LOVE. She talked about her family in Alaska who loves her—and of her love for Jesus. And she confided to him, "When I'm up in the mountains, I feel so close to Heaven."
