For 36-year-old Monique Brown-Ramharrack, every painful hour of the inaugural Supligen Big Boost Games’ gruelling 50-hour endurance challenge brought her one step closer to securing dreams.

A $1-million prize meant she could fund her daughter’s education and support her nephew’s career ambitions, so even as health challenges came her way, she stood her ground. Brown-Ramharrack, the leader of Team Phoenix, which included her 19-year-old daughter Tanique Dunn and nephew Rushane Williams, told THE STAR that while the competition tested every team physically, her own health battle made the challenge even tougher.

“I was so tired and I have gallstones, so the first night it start act up. But I couldn’t tell the kids because I know if I said anything to them, they would start fret. So I didn’t say anything and I couldn’t cry,” she said.