New Friends: How a 67-Year-Old Struck Up Lasting New Friendships During Her First Triathlon

New Friends: How a 67-Year-Old Struck Up Lasting New Friendships During Her First Triathlon
Grandmother and retired psychotherapist Jeanne Mitchell (center), works out with new friends Jess Wargo (left) and Epie Mojica (right). She met them after she decided to enter her first triathlon at the age of 67. Jeanne Mitchell
Brett Chudá
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Jeanne Mitchell, mother and grandmother, had just moved away from the friends she knew. She retired and moved upstate with her husband to a quiet area on the New Jersey coast in 2013. “It’s a beautiful neck of the woods,” she admits, but “it’s not an area where you get to know your neighbors super easy.” She wanted to know more people there. But how? She had no idea that she was about to cross the starting line of a new and abundant social life, all thanks to an idea that popped into her head one January day: “I think I'll do a triathlon.”

“I knew I could ride a bike… I knew I could swim… But I didn’t know if I could run,” Mitchell said.

Brett Chudá
Brett Chudá
Author
Brett Chudá writes stories about fascinating people and ideas that have made a difference in the world. Her degree in World Arts and Cultures from UCLA has served her well as she globetrots from Alaska to Africa to Europe, marveling at each culture’s unique traditions of beauty, wellness, and belief in the divine.
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