Rescue Mission running club trains for inaugural Youngstown Marathon 5K

By Bruce Walton | May 27, 2017 at 12:05a.m.

YOUNGSTOWN

The Rescue Mission of the Mahoning Valley is not just for getting back on your feet, but moving those feet forward.

Every Tuesday and Thursday at 5 p.m. for the past five weeks, the Rescue Mission’s running club comes to Mill Creek Park to practice. The club is made up of clients of the Men’s Discipleship Academy joining with the academy’s manager, Josh Avery, preparing for a 5K portion of the first Youngstown Marathon.

“The overall goal is to keep moving forward toward the finish line,” said Mission volunteer Rick Blair.

The men, ranging from their 20s to 50s, joined the club to improve their lives and reach a goal for themselves. Practices range from a mile and a half to 3 miles, with starts and stops in between. The longest run they have completed without stopping was nearly 2 miles. The club also takes time at the end of the workout to sit down and talk about scripture and problems they might be having.

Ronald Perrelli, 51, joined the club a couple of weeks ago as a part of his first month in the discipleship academy. To him, the club has brought a great improvement in his health and spirituality.

“It gets your heart pumping; your lungs going. And being around some other Christian brothers, it’s just really encouraging,” he said.

Originally from West Virginia, Perrelli said he wants to finish the 5K as a way to prove to people back home that anything is possible.

Blair, a Boardman resident, former English teacher and marathon runner, said he got the idea for the running club while running, when he said he thinks the clearest and feels the closest to God. Bringing the idea to Avery, they decided on a goal of training clients in the academy for the upcoming Youngstown Marathon, which organizers hope to make an annual event.

The discipleship academy is an education program designed to provide clients in the shelter with spiritual and academic resources to gain knowledge to successfully transition back into the community. Avery, also an avid runner, loves the double aspect of running and discussing scripture.

The Youngstown Marathon will take place June 4 in the city with a full marathon, half marathon, a 5K race and a kids marathon.

For details on the running routes, go to the Youngstown Marathon website at https://www.youngstownmarathon.com/course.

Blair said in just a short amount of time, the men in his running club have improved not just their time, but also their commitment to practice and lack of fear in their workout regimen. Blair will be participating in the full marathon, and as his only regret, won’t be watching the men reach the finish line of the 5K race.

After the Youngstown Marathon, Blair said he and Avery know this won’t be the last time they bring the club together. He said the club will probably return perhaps bi-annually or more for future races.