Runners seek pledges in 5K for religious ed. building

Photo courtesy of Diana Hanebrink

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St. Joseph Parish members Tony Hanebrink (front left), Carlo Ardito, Lyna Garcia (back left), Treva Fendrick, Sharon Merriman, Joe Garcia and Trevor Hills pledge to raise funds for a new religious education building by running in a 5K and half marathon.

OGDEN — "Saint Joseph Parish in Ogden is in desperate need of a new religious education building," said Diana Hanebrink, St. Joseph RCIA coordinator and a member of the parish building committee. "The two buildings currently in use were built for different purposes – an insurance office and a family home, which was a restaurant before it became classrooms."

Diana said both buildings are old and extremely inefficient. "We freeze in the cold and melt in the heat," she said.

A building campaign has begun and some parishioners have found a novel way to draw attention to the cause. Building committee member Tony Hanebrink will participate in the Monastic Half Marathon and is leading a team of six runners who will participate in the Most Holy 5K on Saturday Sept. 4 in Huntsville. These races are sponsored every year by Weber State Track and Cross Country. "The name just seems to be tailor-made for a group of folks who want to fund a parish educational building," said Tony. "They call them monastic and most holy because they go past the Trappist Monastery."

Tony, who will enter the race in the 60 to 69 age range, started running in 2002 after he had hiked the Grand Canyon and felt bored. While brainstorming ways to help with St. Joseph’s building campaign, he read an article about a woman who raises funds by running and thought "heaven knows we need a new building," he said. "All entry fees for the race will go to Weber State, but the money we raise through pledges for our team will go to our building fund. The building has old wiring and stains on the carpet, so this means a lot to us."

Sharon Merriman said, "Oh, my goodness, you should see the building we are running for. I love to run when it’s for a worthy cause," said Merriman, who has run in 22 5K races and 6 half marathons. "I love St. Joseph Parish and I believe in building this new building. The kids are our future and the future of St. Joseph."

Unlike Hanebrink and Merriman, this will be Trevor Hills’ first 5K race. "I feel like I am part of the community and the parish by participating in this race," said Hills, an RCIA candidate at St. Joseph Parish. "I work in the area and it is really pretty. This is a way for me to be able to help and the building does need to be updated."

It is also the first 5K for Treva Fendrick. "This is really a good way to inspire some people to donate a little more money, and I’m just becoming a runner," said Fendrick. "There are a lot of children and adults involved in the education program and we need a good facility for them."

Carlo Ardito is an experienced runner and the parish council president. "We are a poor parish, so we need to run to raise funds," he said. "More than 50 percent of our parish is Hispanic and working at minimum wage. Our donations are low. We need to raise awareness not only that we want commitments from people but also that there are other ways and activities they can get involved in to raise money for the new building."