Trail races have become popular in Roanoke over the past few years with the advent of the Mountain Junkies series and other events.
It’s not often that runners (and walkers) get to try out an entirely new trail, but that’s what will happen at this Saturday’s Run for Mercy 5K, which takes place at Valley Word Church. (1928 Loch Haven Road).
Founded almost 30 years ago, Mercy Ministries provides a free-of-charge, voluntary Christian-based residential program to young women aged 13-28 who have been victims of physical and sexual abuse, including sex trafficking, as well as those who face life-controlling issues such as eating disorders, self-harm, drug and alcohol addictions, depression and unplanned pregnancy.
The program features a holistic approach and includes Biblically based counseling, life-skills training, nutrition education and fitness instruction. Mercy Ministries operates residential homes in Nashville, St Louis, Monroe, LA., and Lincoln, CA.
Charlotte Oliver, who worships and works part time at Valley Word Church (motorists can see the three big crosses on their property from I-81) said the congregation donates money to Mercy Ministries.
“They do amazing work,” said Oliver. Two graduates of the program in fact will be on hand this Saturday morning (Oct. 6) to give testimony about the impact Mercy’s program had on their lives. “We try to support them as much as possible. This is a way we thought we would be able to get the name of Mercy Ministries into the Roanoke Valley.” There will also be food and games for children at Saturday’s event.
About a year ago Valley Word received a brochure about a “Mercy Run” in Charlotte, North Carolina. The pastor asked Oliver if they could stage one here. “I thought – I don’t see why not . . . [Now] we’ve been planning for a year.”
At first Oliver (38 and just starting to run again herself) wanted to stage a 5K road race starting from the church, but the logistics of shutting down busy Loch Haven Road and coordinating that task with VDOT led her instead to thinking about a trail race.
Valley Word Church owns a piece of property that includes a mountain. The only problem: there was no trail suitable for a race on that mountain. The solution? An Eagle Scout candidate who attends Valley Word cut one out of the mountain, as the major project needed for his badge.
Runners and walkers who take off from the starting line on Saturday morning will indeed be blazing a new trail. Mountain Junkies LLC, a fixture now in the valley when it comes to timing races, will provide those services again.
Josh and Gina Gilbert, the Junkies themselves, also stage their own trail race series, which ends with the Into the Darkness night race at Explore Park on October 20. Oliver said she has been e-mailing the Gilberts for the past year, seeking their advice on creating a trail 5K race.
Mercy Ministries is completely funded by private means – no government grants – in large part so it can run a Christian-based program, according to Oliver, who said she runs into graduates of the program on a regular basis. Those who can’t make it to the race can also make donations to the Nashville-based at mercyministries.org.
Nancy Alcorn, who worked at a detention facility for women, founded the non-profit. Spiritual counseling couldn’t be offered there, since it was a government facility, unless the inmates asked for it. Alcorn felt what those young women needed was more Christianity and less time behind bars.
Women from 13-28 can enter the Mercy Ministries program, which is provided at no cost to them – thanks in part to donations from events like the Run for Mercy.5K. The program can take from 3-18 months, depending on each situation.
“They equip [these women] with what they need to be able to go out in to the community – they equip them with the love of Christ,” said Oliver.
Local runners can do their small part by lining up for Roanoke’s newest trail race this Saturday morning.
The race begins at 8am; on-site registration for the Run for Mercy begins at 7am. You can also sign up ahead of time at runformercy.org/Roanoke. The fee is $30, $35 if you want to be chip timed.
