The phrase synonymous with the 2013 Boston Marathon got a whole new meaning this week.
Rebekah DiMartino, formerly Rebekah Gregory, who was injured when two bombs went off at the finish line while she was with her young son and fiancé, reinforced the notion of “Boston Strong” with the bravery she’s shown during the process of getting her leg amputated.
DiMartino, 27, had the amputation surgery on Monday in Texas, where she lives, but she’s shared her journey with the public since the beginning via a Facebook page. During the last 18 months she has tried to move her life forward, getting several reconstructive surgeries on her leg and, more importantly, marrying her fiancé who has been with her along the way.
But DiMartino says the one thing holding her back was the continued effort to save her leg. “Today is the day I say goodbye to what is holding me back, and I reclaim my life. And man is that a good feeling,” she wrote.
The day before the surgery she wrote a public letter to her leg saying goodbye.
After the response she got from the letter, she wrote an update the following day, keeping the humor and saying, “Adios leg!!!!!!!!!!”
DiMartino has remained a beacon of hope over the last year and a half as she’s worked to recover, with the determination to run in the 2015 Boston Marathon. “Last night I didn’t sleep a wink but it wasn’t because of nerves,” DiMartino wrote after the surgery. “Instead it was from the excitement of thinking about all the goals I have for myself going forward.”
