When 92-year-old Harriette Thompson crossed the finish line at the San Diego Rock 'n' Roll Marathon last month, she set the record for the oldest woman to complete a marathon.

She also provided an important lesson to peer-to-peer fundraising professionals everywhere: sometimes your most powerful supporters come from unexpected places. Thompson has run 16 races and raised about $100,000 for Team In Training - the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's endurance fundraising program.

"That's a lot of money for one person to raise," says Emily Blust, executive director of LLS's North Carolina chapter. 

It's also an amazing accomplishment for a woman who had never run more than a block when she decided to join Team In Training at 76.

LLS staff and volunteers have played an important supporting role in Thompson's fundraising and athletic success.

Team In Training provides its runners with extensive training and support to preparethem for the rigors of endurance events and fundraising. It also works extra hard to convert first-timers into multiple event participants.

When Harriette Thompson signed up for TNT no one imagined that 16 years later she would make international headlines and have raised so much.  Investing time and care in nurturing an elder athlete has paid enormous dividends for LLS.  

Moral of the story: Be on the lookout among your supporters for the unlikely superstar waiting for your help to shine.