With each step, Kate DeAngelo made sure she was processing her surroundings.

There was the Palais Garnier, the setting for The Phantom of the Opera, grandiose as it was 150 years ago.

She passed the Louvre, home of Mona Lisa and Venus de Milo, and of course, the Eiffel Tower stood tall over it all. In the dark Paris sky, the Olympic flame was a sight to behold.

DeAngelo, a medical laboratory scientist at St. Luke’s Magic Valley, was far from home, but she was doing what she loved — running. It’s what brought her to Paris, a 10K held on the Olympic course between the men’s and women’s marathons.

“I kinda had to pinch myself during the race, being present in the moment was really important,” DeAngelo said.

Having a goal like the “Marathon pour Tous” event (“Marathon for All”) is what got DeAngelo into running in the first place — she was not a runner until about seven years ago when she heard about a half marathon in Maui.

That sounded fun.

After completing it, she found not just a hobby, but a passion.

“I’ve done 23 half marathons now, all around the country, ran one in London and in June, I did one in Aruba,” DeAngelo said. “It combines two things I love — being healthy and seeing new places.”

DeAngelo entered a lottery last year to try to enter the Paris race, and after being selected in November, had plenty of time to plan. She took her mom with, and even before running, got in plenty of steps seeing the city: about 25,000 per day.

Each location brings a different experience, none have been the same. In Paris, for example, the race was held at night, to accommodate the Olympic marathons, held in the morning on Aug. 10 and 11.

“I didn’t start until after midnight, but there were so many people around because of the Olympics, cheering us on, the energy was electrifying,” she said. “I work the graveyard shift, so I was kind of used to being up late.”

And through that work, plus the quest to be in top shape, DeAngelo also has been inspired to be an advocate for helping others, even if she never meets them.

A longtime blood donor, she also decided to become part of the National Bone Marrow Registry about six years ago, a little more than a year after joining St. Luke’s.

Late last year, she was contacted that she was a match for someone battling leukemia. She didn’t hesitate to act, flying to San Diego and donating in December.

“I see those blood cells under the microscope, you know that person is going through something incredibly difficult,” DeAngelo said. “Having that in the back of my mind, I thought it would be an incredible experience if I actually got to donate.”

This spring, she was contacted again, letting her know the patient she donated bone marrow to was in need of a boost in cells. The patient, a 12-year-old boy, had improved in the months since, but could use a little more help.

So, DeAngelo was ready to give, again. She drove to St. Luke’s Boise in late May and donated peripheral stem cells to the patient.

“If I can help to give him a better life, a fulfilling life, I’d gladly do anything I could,” DeAngelo said.

Currently planning her next “runcation,” DeAngelo noted that it has become a lifechanging cycle.

“You have these runs that inspire you to keep working toward a goal, it keeps you healthy and feeling good, it’s helped me be a good donor and has helped me recover more quickly after donating,” DeAngelo said.