MARQUETTE – It all started with a flower.

Breanna Pond, a local gynecologist and mother of three, joined a group of friends in 2011 to run the CellCom Half Marathon in Green Bay, Wisconsin. A colorful flower in their hair – originally used to identify each other during the race – became the symbol of their unity, and now is the symbol behind a national movement to empower and unite women through running.

The humble beginnings of the Fellow Flowers running movement – started by two Upper Peninsula natives, Mary Ellen Charbonneau and Tori Sager – is an inspiring story in its own right, now reaching 25,000 women nationally. But Breanna Pond didn’t know her involvement also served as an inspiration to her 9-year-old daughter, Ella.

Ella attended a Fellow Flowers’ event in February, Declare It Day, and heard her mom share her story of transformation through running. At the event, Ella filled out a card outlining a goal of hers. She wanted to complete a kids’ triathlon, and told herself and her mom that she’d “crush it” by 2016.

With the goal also came a flower, gifted by her mother through the “Flower it Forward” initiative. It was purple, and stood for “no excuses,” a message all-to-familiar with Breanna Pond as she lost about 50 pounds in the last year or two through exercise.

That was the sentiment Ella had in the back of her mind when she completed the Lifetime Kids Tri Chicago on Aug. 29, along with more than 650 other kids around her age.

With the purple flower in her hair, Ella swam 100 meters, biked 4 kilometers and ran 1 kilometer.

“I was kind of nervous,” she said. “But before the race, my neighbor gave me a magnet that said ‘when she realized she was brave enough, everything changed.'”

Breanna Pond said she was amazed by Ella’s drive and competitiveness during the race.

“I cried as I watched her cross the finish line,” she said. “It was one of my most proud mom moments ever.”

On the next day, Breanna Pond also completed her first triathlon – the Transamerica Chicago Triathlon – in under two hours with Ella and her family cheering her on from the sidelines.

In her hair, a silver flower from Ella that symbolized hope.

“It was the push from (Ella) that made this happen,” she said. “I was more committed. I couldn’t back out with her there.”

The pair had been training together since Mother’s Day, something that brought them together in their journey to achieve a shared goal.

“You feel like you’re taking away from your kids when you’re a working mom,” Breanna Pond said. “This was a really nice thing for us to do together.”

She also said it has been a good way teach Ella and her brothers about the importance of leading a healthy life, as well as experiencing the world around them.

“I want them to grow up with that mindset and to see it’s important to work toward a goal,” she said.

Since completing the triathlons, Breanna and Ella have received positive feedback, serving as an inspiration to those around them.

“I’ve had so many people ask me about it … family, friends, teachers, neighbors,” Breanna Pond said.

Her husband and Ella’s dad, George Pond, said he is proud to have two unique, strong women in his family.

“They set a goal and they accomplished it,” he said. “They were focused and motivated … you kind of get caught up in it – it was an emotional experience.”

Ella also shared her story this week at school, hoping to motivate her classmates to get outside their comfort zones.

“If you think you can do something, but you’re scared… do it anyway,” she said.