WORCESTER, Mass. - For the Kennedys, the Boston Marathon isn't just a race, it’s a family tradition.

Brothers Dean and Zack have had a family member running in it for 40 years. This year, they'll join their brother Chip as all three Kennedy boys will hit the pavement in the race.

"This will be incredibly, incredibly special, incredibly powerful," said Zack. "I really look forward to it."

We first introduced you to the Kennedy family last year, when Dean was preparing to run the marathon in memory of his father. Their father Jake Kennedy ran the marathon for 37 years. He passed away in 2020 after a battle with ALS.

"It was arguably the greatest day of my life," Dean said. "Doing something that my dad loved, when I crossed the finish line, he had done it 37 straight times, I mean, I don't really know how to put it into words what it really felt, just the emotions that came over me."

While Dean was training last year, Zack was in the midst of studying ALS for his post-doctoral degree at UMass Chan Medical School. With the academic accomplishment under his belt, Zack will join him in running this year. It will be his fifth overall Boston Marathon, and first without his father.

"To be able to, us brothers, keep that streak up is just magical," an emotional Zack said.

The brothers will be raising money for the Jake Kennedy ALS Fund and UMass Chan's department of neurology. On top of being a physical grind, it's also an emotional one.

"It is very hard," said Dean. "Obviously the training is fun. But I think while you're training, you always have in the back of your head why you're doing it and the reasons that we're doing it. Those will never change for as long as we do this, until we hopefully cure this disease."

This year, their goal is to raise $50,000, but it’s just a small piece of their puzzle. The Kennedys said before their father passed, he had a goal of raising $1,000,000 for the cause.

"They'll be able to spend it for research without any barriers whatsoever," Zack said. "It's awesome that in our neck of the woods, we have a world-class, premier, research institution."

They said they're about 60% of the way there, and fully intend on reaching their fundraising number.

"We need your help though," Dean said. "We need everyone's help. So, pour in the money, right? Pour in the money. We need everyone's help."