This weekend's RBC Brooklyn Half Marathon carries a deeper meaning for one runner who has turned tragedy into triumph. Jessica Aguilar, who lost part of her leg after a devastating accident, is lacing up her shoes to prove that the human spirit can overcome even the toughest obstacles.

Running has always been part of Aguilar's identity. She started as a high school sophomore, and it was this passion that ultimately paved her way to college. But in December 2022, everything changed. After a night out with friends, a drunk driver struck her, dragging her 40 feet down the road. The crash cost her 7% of her right leg.

"I had three emergency surgeries, reconstruction, skin grafts—I had to learn how to walk again," Aguilar recalls. Doctors told her she would never run again, warning that the impact of concrete was too much for her injured leg to handle.

For years, Aguilar accepted that harsh reality. "I gave up on it. It was just a life I accepted for myself at the time," she says. But her daughter—a runner herself—refused to let her mother stay on the sidelines. After seeing old photos of Aguilar racing in college, the young girl signed her mom up for a half marathon that would raise money for her school.

"She said, 'Mom, you can do this,'" Aguilar shares with a smile. "She didn't really understand that I couldn't. So I didn't want to show her no. I didn't want to back down on something she wanted me to do."

That moment reignited Aguilar's love for the sport. She now sees running as a privilege, not a given. She joined New York Road Runners and began signing up for races. "They've created a space for me to race in a way that I get to tell my story," she says.

This weekend, Aguilar will tackle the RBC Brooklyn Half with a simple but powerful goal: cross the finish line and watch her daughter run too. "I'm a better mom because of this," she says. "Now she has a mother who has shown her what resilience looks like—and that you never give up on something you love."

The RBC Brooklyn Half takes place this weekend, and it's a powerful reminder that every step forward—no matter how hard-won—is a victory worth celebrating.