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Meet Emma Gray, Team Brookline Runner

Decked out in “I Love Mom” shirts and holding signs that say, “Run faster, Mom!”, 8-year-old twin sisters take their place in the Boston Marathon’s cheering crowd, their excited cheers joining the chorus as runners fly by.

This is the scene that awaits Team Brookline runner Emma Gray on Marathon Monday. Her daughters are her biggest fans—and her inspiration for running the Marathon in support of accessible mental health care.

2026 will mark Emma’s second consecutive year running with Team Brookline and fundraising for The Brookline Center. Her daughters’ enthusiastic encouragement, coupled with her personal connection to mental health support, has brought her back to this important cause.

“If I can be part of something that can help to increase access to mental health care and support services, then I want in. It’s a huge gap in our health care system and there’s still such stigma,” Emma explains.

Running became a crucial part of Emma’s own mental health journey a few years ago when she experienced multiple life disruptions. Within a period of 12 months, Emma lost her father and sister-in-law, began a new career, and went through a divorce—all while caring for young twins. Running became her place of peace and calm.

Supporting The Brookline Center also feels personal to Emma because of the Center’s range of youth mental health services. As much as she needed to find her way through intense life challenges, her daughters similarly need support navigating a shifted family dynamic at such a young age.

“They’re trying to work through this new thing,” Emma says. “And their mental health is being tested.”

As Emma pushes through intense training runs and builds towards her fundraising goal, her daughters keep her going. “I want them to see no problem is too big to handle.” Emma shares, “We can do hard things. We get to do hard things.”

For Emma, “doing hard things” is made easier by the community she has found at The Brookline Center. “The people there are pretty special,” she says. “They clearly care about their work and the community, in Brookline and way beyond.”

Support Emma’s efforts and the rest of the Center’s Team Brookline runners here.