ACWORTH, Ga. — In the early morning hours when the deer quietly graze and the sidewalks are still dark, the pounding footsteps of the Owen family break the silence of the night.
The Acworth family of six runs together every day.
No matter if it’s the school year or summer break, every morning at 4:30 a.m. mom and dad Kelly and Abe Owen and their three girls Elle, Lily Kate and Brinkley peel themselves out of bed to run together. Their youngest son, Blaze, stays home for now.
“I’ve learned not to think. You just do. You can always justify not running at 4:30 in the morning, but you never regret going,” Kelly said.
This love for running started with the parents who ran their first Peachtree together 25 years ago in 1998 when they first started dating. They had each run separately a few times before that.
As a couple, Kelly and Abe have tackled marathons on the road and in life.
Four kids later, they passed the running gene down to the next generation.
Their two oldest daughters, Elle and Lily Kate, run cross country for Harrison High School. Their youngest two, Brinkley and Blaze, run with Junior Hoyas, the middle school running program.
That’s what inspired them to start running in their neighborhood together – to help their girls train for cross country.
Even though it started as a training regimen, each family member says it has become more than that.
“We help motivate each other and push each other, which I feel like has helped us get closer,” Elle said.
Kelly says it's all about the time spent with her kids. The health benefit and endorphin kick is a side bonus.
“I get excited just to be there with all my children,” Kelly added as she starts to get choked up. “It’s just sweet to see your kids fall in love with something that you have fallen in love with and just follow in your footsteps.”
Five of the Owens have run the AJC Peachtree Road Race before.
This year for the parents' 25th-anniversary run, they’re taking the whole family.
“I’m going to go with my dad and probably walk and jog,” Blaze said.
All six of them will tackle the race together on the Fourth of July.
“It’s very exciting because we’re all doing it together,” Lily Kate said.
Every other day of the year, the Owen family will be back on the sidewalks of Acworth before sunrise running with and for each other, always reaching whatever the finish line is together.