In the midst of the pandemic last summer, Haddonfield Memorial High School’s boys cross country team decided to brave the sweltering outdoors and dedicate their July mileage run to help out Interfaith Caregivers.
The boys decided to continue that charitable effort by last year’s squad and dedicate this month to the same cause. Last year, the Haddon harriers pledged to trek 1,500 miles. This year, with similarly sizzling temperatures on tap, their goal has been increased to 1,600 miles.
Members of the community who want to support the endeavor can pledge funds for every mile run. At the end of the month, those donations will be turned over to Interfaith Caregivers to support its mission of facilitating independence for seniors and disabled persons in Haddonfield and the surrounding area.
Early risers under normal circumstances, the runners believe the challenge offers deeper meaning than just racing to boost stamina and foster teamwork.
“Although it’s still hot and humid, we know we can get through it. We also wanted to encourage the younger kids, our underclassmen teammates, to keep up,” rising senior Ethan Wellborn told the Sun on June 30.
“It wasn’t really a hard decision. Coach (Dave) Stewart mentioned it and we all agreed to go back and run for Interfaith Caregivers.”
While admitting this year’s squad is smaller than last year’s, Wellborn said tacking on an extra 100 miles shouldn’t be a big deal. Team members will be broken up into smaller groups, based on seniority and ability, to tackle a specific amount of ground on each run.
The top team, consisting of Wellborn, Tobi Janssen, Andrew Sullivan and Seth Clevenger, will be responsible for nine- to 10-mile runs to start, with other clusters running seven to eight miles at a clip for the first half of the month. Then, from mid to late July, their daily course expands into the 10- to 13-mile range. Varsity runners such as Ian Romea and George Andrus and the rest of the younger runners are expected to run four to five miles at the beginning, while a middle group would tackle six- to eight-mile treks.
“Our highest priority will be mileage this summer, particularly for July with the challenge,” Wellborn said.
The highest priority for Interfaith Caregivers leadership, is to help older adults maintain a sense of normalcy. New Executive Director Larissa Willison assumed the role from Nancy DeLaura back in February. DeLaura enthusiastically welcomed the boys’ idea last year, and Willison is equally thrilled they decided to help the organization once more.
“We’re so excited that they’ve partnered with us again. It was a very meaningful endeavor. They are dedicated young men,” Willison said on June 30. “Not only are they running for themselves, but they are also doing it for older folks in the community. Which is a great message.”
Though Willison admitted she’s only recently become familiar with the challenge, she already foresees how future donations will help.
“I imagine we’ll see the windfall used for volunteer recruitment, and for moving things along, like transferring the application process for volunteers online,” she revealed. “I think we’ll do some outreach as well.”
One thing that’s up for debate is whether or not the Haddon girls will respond in kind, something Wellborn supports. Last year, they didn’t want to let their counterparts steal the spotlight, so the girls performed their own collective good deed later in the summer.
“I’d say yes,” Wellborn said of a possible girls’ run. “They’re losing a lot of their senior group, and they had one of the best teams of all time this past year. But they still have dedicated runners who will put in a good amount of miles. Even with those departures, they have a much bigger team.”
For anyone interested in making a pledge, contact Stewart at: [email protected], with July Mileage Challenge and the amount you’d like to pledge per mile in the subject line. The team will accept pledges through July 31.
For more information about the mileage challenge, visit: https://haddonfieldbulldogscrosscountry.com/. For more information about Interfaith Caregivers, visit: https://www.ifchaddons.org/.
