Chris Stevenson and his wife, Kaila, pose for a photo at the Blessing of the Fleet Road Race in Narragansett, Rhode Island.

For Hopkinton resident Chris Stevenson, the Boston Marathon is like a puzzle he keeps trying to solve.

“For some reason, I just can’t figure out this race,” Stevenson said. “Every year, I come back trying to look for redemption.”

With any luck, 2025 will be that redemption year. This will be Stevenson’s fifth time running the Boston Marathon, and his 11th marathon overall. Other races he’s participated in include marathons in Chicago, Providence and New York along with the Hampton Beach Half Marathon and the Ironman Lake Placid Triathlon.

Stevenson’s athletic streak began after he left college. “Right out of college, I started doing triathlons,” he explained. 

“I’ve always just been down … for anything adventurous,” he added.

It was through the Boston Marathon that Stevenson met his wife, Kaila. Both ran the marathon in 2018 for the American Liver Foundation. Stevenson was running the race in honor of his father, who passed away from liver cancer in 2017. Kaila ran in memory of a friend who passed away from the same illness at a young age.

The two married, moved to Hopkinton in 2019 and had their daughter, Josephine. The family, along with their beloved golden retriever, Mia, has lived on Lakeshore Drive for the past six years.

Stevenson, a native of Rehoboth, said he moved “all over the place” for years before settling in Hopkinton.

“What sold us was the lake,” he said of the decision to move to town. Other draws to Hopkinton included the proximity to the marathon and the strength of the local school system. But the Lake Maspenock community now is what drives Stevenson on his charity run of the Boston Marathon.

Stevenson will be running on behalf of the Lake Maspenock Preservation Association this year. The goals of the LMPA in preserving the lake and the surrounding community resonate with his own values.

“Having our daughter, things in our life have changed a little bit,” said Stevenson. “We want to make sure she [and others] can enjoy this lake for future generations to come.”

Getting the charity bib from the LMPA was a bit of its own race, Stevenson acknowledged. “In our neighborhood, there’s a whole bunch of runners,” he said. “Thankfully, I was selected for it.”

According to Stevenson’s fundraising page, his goal is to raise $3,500 for the LMPA. He had reached about half that amount heading into April. The money will go to support the nonprofit’s efforts to preserve and protect Lake Maspenock and its surrounding communities. 

“It’s a big fundraiser for everything that we’re doing for the LMPA,” said Stevenson, noting that the volunteer-run organization’s only other method of fundraising is through memberships.

Money raised will go toward efforts such as education outreach on lake safety and other community events, he noted.

Community supports effort

With 10 total marathon runs under his belt, Stevenson is no stranger to the training involved in hitting those 26.2 miles. His priority is to maintain his health as he works himself into shape.

“Overall, the whole goal of Boston is to not be injured and going into the race healthy,” he explained.

Stevenson has a solid community of runners around Lake Maspenock, and he has spent time training with the Hopkinton Running Club. He praised the group, calling it “a great asset for any runner.”

As to why he’s decided to run Boston for a fifth time, Stevenson says it’s a pursuit of passion.

“I fell in love with doing the Boston Marathon,” he said. 

For his 11th marathon, Stevenson says “there’s something about Boston that makes it so special and also so humbling.”