Barbara Tatge ran her first Boston Marathon last month, which is an achievement in itself. But now she’s become a viral celebrity thanks to a dare, a quest and the letter that solved her now-awkward mystery.
During the marathon, her daughter, Paige Tatge, dared her to kiss a random male spectator during the portion of the race in Wellesley, Massachusetts. Paige then contacted the Wellesley Townsman in an effort to find out who the man was.
It turns out that the man’s wife was also running the marathon for the first time. She sent a letter to Paige and her mom. While the couple wish to remain anonymous, they said the national attention Paige and Barbara’s story got was fun.
The woman sent The Townsman photos of the hat, shirt and jacket her husband wore on the day of the marathon to prove that her story was true.
“We all thought this story was hilarious because it is just like my husband to do that,” the man’s wife wrote to Barbara. “It was one of many memorable stories from a great weekend in Boston.”
The woman later continued, “While this may not be the ending that you had hoped for, that spontaneous, silly moment in Wellesley captured the fun, energy and spirit of the Boston Marathon. I greatly admire your spunk and courage and wish you many happy races in the future. Congratulations on your Boston finish!”
“The letter was so kind and good-hearted,” Barbara said, notes the Associated Press. “She's a great sport, and he's fortunate to be married to someone like her.”
While the kiss didn’t help Barbara find her Prince Charming, it won’t stop her from kissing male spectators during the next marathon. “Moving forward I will revert to only kissing single men,” she told the Townsman.
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