Becoming Nice Jewish Runners Nashville

I still remember sitting in that East Nashville donut shop after finishing a hilly and chilly October morning run. A few months prior, I’d found a new running group and routinely began joining them for runs. We’d usually meet at a coffee shop, run from there, and hang out post-run. It was a nice way for me to get back into running and meet new people. The soccer player in me was elated to have found a “team,” something I’d missed ever since I stopped playing.

Once everyone finished the route, we eagerly waited in line, a little sweaty, browsing that morning’s pastry selection. I played it safe and went with a regular glazed donut, it didn’t disappoint. The conversations were flowing and those of us around the table grew as each person placed their order then came to talk about their week and what they were looking forward to in the upcoming one.

Not long after, my phone began going off with alerts that Israel was under attack. I was trying to focus on being with friends but with every new buzz I was getting more and more concerned. I’d finished the conversation I was having and excused myself. 

I can’t remember the first report I read, but I was clicking from article to article and what was happening in Israel was slowly playing out on my phone screen. I felt paralyzed. Everything stopped. I was confused, angry, worried, and a load of other emotions. I had so much going through my head but no idea what to say.

The Jewish Federation of Greater Nashville put out a statement and I felt it was appropriate to share that. A couple of days later the leader of the run club I was attending at the time reached out to say they were thinking about both Jews & Palestinians at that time. A kind and thoughtful gesture. After some back and forth, I’d learned they were Palestinian. I think in the moment things were still too raw for either of us to bring anything up in-person, and now I regret that we never got to have a conversation.

The next few weeks were difficult, I was still going to runs but things felt off. Over time this person began sharing appalling posts on their personal social media. Nothing ever came up on the running account or in person, but their personal page felt like a Jewish punching bag some days. Odd that you feel like you can freely post this kind of stuff behind a screen and then show up to group events as a different person, unfortunately we’ve seen that in many spaces since October 7. 

It took me a few months before I reached my breaking point with it. I didn’t want this to be the reason I’d lost this new community and routine. But I also couldn’t keep trying to find reason in how someone who originally seemed to have kind and community building intentions could repetitively be saying stuff like, “the only thing learned (since ‘what the Nazis did in Ausschwitz’ ← yes, misspelled) was how to pay it forward.”

What added to the hurt and shock was that NO ONE was saying anything. I’m still disappointed in people to this day. We all saw it, some of us even talked about it, and people stayed silent. Was this going to be another time in my life where I was the one Jewish person who was going to have to call out antisemitism on my own?

Eventually I stopped attending the runs. There’s a section of the prayer book I use that reads, “Once or twice in a lifetime, a man or woman may choose a radical leaving, having heard Lech L’cha — Go forth. God disturbs us toward our destiny by hard events and by freedom’s now urgent voice… We don’t like leaving, but God loves becoming.” 

And becoming was exactly what I didn’t know needed to happen. I had to leave a space that no longer felt safe and have the courage to keep moving, literally. I continued my running journey, sometimes with friends, and many of the miles were done alone and allowed for a lot of thought and reflection.

In April 2024 I came across an Instagram reel from Nice Jewish Runners. Their video was filled with love, smiles, and a community running together in New York. I fell down a rabbit hole of their content and reached out to see if they had a Nashville or Tennessee chapter, they didn’t yet. Over the next month and a half I worked with their founder, Ezra Feig, and two other captains, Arielle and Zoe, to come up with a plan for how I could successfully start and maintain a chapter in Nashville. 

Here we are three months later, going on our 18th (wait, wow, I’m just realizing this… how Jewish!) run/walk on September 1st and we’re not slowing down. I’m totally not over the fact that by COMPLETE CHANCE our 3-month run is our 18th run! The number 18 in Judaism is associated with life, health, and prosperity. All three of those things are what our runs and walks are full of. This is the most serendipitous thing!

Anyway, back to how we got here… our first run was Sunday, June 2. I was excited and a little nervous for what the turnout would be. I had reached out to just about every Nashville Jewish organization and leader I could think of to send them a little information about our group and encourage them to come. I texted friends, and total strangers who had expressed interest a few weeks prior. I was met with a really good response and a lot of support. We had 16 people at our first run and it’s been pretty consistent since. 

We began meeting on Sunday mornings at 8:30 a.m. in 12 South and week after week people kept showing up. We have new friends, repeat runners, we’ve got a steady group of walkers, and dogs too (when it’s not too hot)! The joy that this group has brought me has been beyond what I ever expected. I really just wanted a group to run with again and to have a place to meet other Jews in a setting of movement. I’ve connected with people I don't know if I ever would have thanks to this group and they’re people that if they miss a week, I miss them. It’s also given me something to pour into. 

For the first two months we met at the same place and time to get into a routine. Pretty quickly people expressed wanting to try different routes and some people couldn't make the 8:30 a.m. time. In August we added new days and times to figure out what was going to give people another chance to join us for runs and walks. We’ve been able to add Thursday evenings at 7 p.m. and vary the places we meet. We’ve been able to support a handful of Jewish owned businesses and gotten really good feedback from them and have had the chance to try some new spots around town. 

I have so much I could say about this group and can’t continue without saying thank you. Thank you to every single person who’s shown up. Whether it’s to one run, or routinely. I truly had no clue what the response would be here, and to know week after week we’re getting the most fun, kind people to come hang out has brought me so much joy and hope. Thank you to each person who’s talked to someone else about Nice Jewish Runners! Word of mouth and personal connections are the best way to encourage people to come runs/walks. One of my favorite things has been being at another Jewish event and hearing “Nice Jewish Runners” in a conversation nearby. Thank you for sharing. Thank you for naturally stepping up and leading pace groups, thank you for leading on days I can’t come, and continuing to lead conversations and bringing kindness to every single run/walk. I’m smiling like an idiot with all the gratitude. You all are truly some of the best people I know!

On the weekends I want to stay snuggled under my sheets, I know there’s a really good reason to swing my legs out of bed and get going. The movement and social aspect gets the serotonin flowing and is the best way to start the day and week. Getting to see our neighborhoods by foot and appreciate the beautiful spaces we have to run has filled me with gratitude. 

I have so many ideas for what’s to come for NJR Nashville and also want to let it keep doing its thing. Going into the fall, we are looking forward to a few races, a pasta dinner to send off one of our runners before the Berlin Marathon, birthdays, and the continuation of living our nice Jewish lives. I think the added benefit of having chapters in two dozen cities is that there's a good chance you can run with other NJR groups in a city you might be headed to! We’ve had a few out of towners join us and it’s added so much to our day! 

If you’ve never been to a run/walk and Instagram hasn’t convinced you to come, let me give you a quick breakdown… First and foremost, we’re a social run/walk club, and you don't have to be Jewish to join us, just nice! Yes, the name is Nice Jewish Runners but we have walkers every week, I promise. After every run/walk we have a place to meet for post-movement schmoozing. When you arrive chances are there are going to be a lot of smiles, some laughter, and a lot of nice people! We start NJR with announcements, some weeks I’m more scattered brained than others, but we get through them :) We then go around and do names and a question of the day, go over the routes (we always have a 1.5 mile route and a 3 mile route), you can choose to run or walk, and usually everyone falls into a pace with at least one other person. Once we all return, we head into the coffee shop or bar we’ve chosen for the week and get to talking.

I’ve found it to be a nice space to feel like you can show up how you want that day. If you come just wanting to be around people, you can do that. There’s no pressure to talk the entire time. If you’re having a rough week, you can come. We’ve got people who will listen and sit with you in whatever feelings you’re having. If you come with all the energy in the world, there are people who will meet that.

I will say, coming up on one year since October 7 will be hard. I, and I know many others in our community, are here for whoever needs it, in whatever way that’s going to look. Please reach out if you need support.

There’s no good way to wrap this because I could go on and on. This group is my favorite thing. So I’ll leave it with thank you and I can’t wait to see all of what’s coming for NJR Nashville and NJR. This group has helped me in so many ways, and I hope those who have come feel that in some sort of way too. My heart, and camera roll are full. I love being Jewish, I love running, and I love you all. L’Chaim! To life, to health, and many more runs/walks!