How It All Started: The Story of Every Person Run Club

By: Lahaina Mae MondoÑedo

When people ask how Every Person Run Club started, I always smile, because the real answer is simple: a handful of neighbors just… kept showing up.

But here’s the fuller version.

Before EPRC had an Instagram, training programs, or race weekend events, we were simply the lululemon run club. Back in the summer of 2021—peak pandemic uncertainty, gyms still closed, everyone craving movement and connection—lululemon hosted a six-week Wednesday night run series led by Scott Luther and Mike Yasson based out of the Navy Yard store. Scott was a rock star on the lululemon team, and Mike was one of his incredible community ambassadors.

The series was designed as a short, fun build-up to a DC-based virtual 10K activation—lululemon’s replacement for their iconic Seawheeze Half Marathon, which had moved online that year. No one expected much after the finale. But here’s what happened:

After the 10K, runners looked at Mike and Scott and basically said,
“Wait… we’re not done, right?”

People weren’t ready to lose the energy, the accountability, or the little pop of joy that came from seeing familiar faces on a Wednesday night.

So Mike and Scott turned to Tony Kostreski and me and said, “Hey… let’s keep this thing going.”

And we did.
With no plan. No budget. No roadmap.
Just a shared belief that running could—and should—be accessible, welcoming, and enjoyable for everyone, no matter your pace, background, or experience with the sport.

We showed up every Wednesday, and the word spread in the most old-school, grassroots way possible. Friends told friends. Neighbors tagged along. Someone’s coworker came once… and then brought their roommate the next week. And suddenly, this tiny run group was… not so tiny.

Enter: The Sunday Long(er) Run, and our Turtle

As we approached the end of 2021, many of our runners were training for the 2022 Rock ’n’ Roll Half Marathon, and we kept hearing the same request:

“Can we add a long run?”

So we added it. And just like that, our very first training program was born!

That spring, I became a lululemon ambassador, and with the encouragement and support of the lululemon team and my co-founders, the run club officially got its own identity (enter our turtle logo). But honestly, the name had been there all along. Mike had been calling us Every Person Run Club from the early days, because that’s exactly what it felt like—every pace, every background, every story, every runner welcome.

Training Programs, Milestones, and a Whole Lot of Community Love

Once we had Sundays, things took on a life of their own.

That summer of 2022, runners began training for the Marine Corps Marathon—and just like that, training program number two was born. Fast forward to today, and EPRC now offers three free training programs each year:

• Spring Race Training, leading to the DC Rock ’n’ Roll Half Marathon and the Cherry Blossom 10-Miler

• First/Fast 5K, supporting runners training for their very first 5K or their fastest one, culminating at the DCFR Pride 5K

• Fall Marathon Training, leading to the Marine Corps Marathon

But training has always been just the backbone.

The real heartbeat of EPRC is the community.
The post-run hangs.
The cheer stations that energize you for miles.
The EPRC Birthday celebrations.

Every Womxn’s Run.
The People’s Afterparty.
Our yearly holiday potlucks.

The coffee runs, sunrise miles, birthday miles, and the “I didn’t want to come, but I’m so glad I did” miles.

And while this club grew organically, none of what we do is accidental.

We don’t just invite everyone—we do our best to make sure people feel genuinely welcome and supported before, during, and after every run. Sometimes that looks like structure: clear run guides, access to bathrooms, a bag drop at every run, coach-certified training plans, tracking progress, and showing up loud and proud on race day to cheer every runner across the finish line.

And sometimes it looks much simpler: learning your name, running alongside you on your first run, offering reassurance when you’re nervous, and exchanging high-fives that say, you belong here.

Before moving into 2023, it became clear that this community had grown into something bigger than the four of us who originally helped keep the runs going. So we did the most natural thing we could think of—we turned to the people who were already showing up with consistency, care, and heart.

We asked some of our most dedicated members to become team captains. Not to manage the community, but to help hold it. To welcome new runners, support training groups, and make sure no one ever feels alone out there.

Then, entering 2024, we took another step forward. With team captains leading the way, we built volunteer committees—groups of runners supporting bi-weekly runs, cheer stations, special events, and all the moments in between that make EPRC feel alive.

And that’s when it really clicked:
EPRC isn’t founder-led. It’s community-led.

This club didn’t grow because we wanted it to be big.
It grew because people felt seen, supported, and cared for—and then invited others to experience that same feeling.

Every Person Run Club started because runners didn’t want the running to end. It continues because people keep choosing to show up—for themselves, and for each other.

And as long as that remains true, this community will keep moving forward—with intention and heart—one mile, one conversation, one shared moment at a time.

As always, you’re welcome to join us.

Group photo of all the runners who showed up at EPRC’s very first run on August 4, 2021.

Group photo of EPRC runners (some of them, not all) at the 2025 Holiday Party on December 5, 2025.