Hope: One Pound At A Time

(Monday) July 19, 2010

Rony Wise ran 600 miles and lifted four million pounds to raise money for Haiti relief. (Photo: Alex Hampl)

By Alex Hampl
alexandrianews.org

Rony Wise has lifted the equivalent of ten blue whales. He has run 600 miles, round trip from Washington to New York with a jaunt to Philadelphia thrown in for good measure. Over six months, Wise ran and lifted weights every day to raise funds for Ripples of Hope, an organization that provides financial aid to schools in Haiti.

It all started with the dirt cookies. Wise’s friend and colleague Harry Covert was actively involved in Ripples of Hope.  After returning from a trip to Haiti, Covert sent a report with photos of his trip titled “Dirt Cookies Instead of Oreos” to a group of friends. According to Wise, the children at the school where Covert volunteered were given in-school lunch only once a week. Many of the children got little food outside of school and made “dirt cookies” to sell and trade to make money. It was this image that most affected Wise.

“I don’t think a lot of people realize that the despair and poverty down there doesn’t even equate to here,” Wise said. “In America, there are lots of hungry people, but they can go to a soup kitchen and there are programs for the needy. In Haiti, they’ve got nothing. Some things just call you to action.”

Wise, the Inmate Records Director at the Alexandria Detention Center, started talking to some of his coworkers about raising money. With the help of a colleague, he decided to solicit funds for running 600 miles and lifting four million pounds. Wise suggested that people pledge one penny for every 10,000 pounds he lifted, which would result in a four-dollar pledge per person. He got most of his support from individual donors within the Sheriff’s office and his Homeowner’s Association. He set a goal of $7,680, which would be enough to provide lunches for the school every day for a year.

Wise began his training on January 1. Less than two weeks later, disaster struck and his plans were changed. On January 12, the now infamous earthquake hit Port au Prince and devastated Haiti. The school that Wise was hoping to provide with food had crumbled and was in dire need of repairs.

“What started out as an opportunity to help feed students in Haiti turned into a relief effort after the earthquake,” Wise said.

Wise was facing problems of his own reaching the lofty goals he set. It was difficult to run every day, especially with the record snowstorms that paralyzed the DC area for weeks.

“During the snow storm I tried to run but kept slipping on the ice. Then I realized that if I got hurt I couldn’t finish [the 600 miles] so I had to take a week off and increase my pace after,” Wise said.

The storm, coupled with illness, forced Wise to ratchet up his running pace from the original 3.3 miles per day to over five, sometimes running as many as 11 miles in one outing. On top of that he said he regularly spent two and a half hours a day lifting weights in his basement. For motivation he turned to his family.

“At first I was just trying to keep up with the lifting, but then my family got involved,” Wise said. “My four year old daughter would be down there with me, and she was doing her own arm curls with her three pound dumbbells. My son is nine and he was helping to collect donations. Sometimes he donated his own money… seeing that kept me motivated.”

The school that Wise is raising money for was devastated by the Haitian earthquake. (Courtesy Photo)

Rony Wise is a humble man, one who seems almost embarrassed at the support he has gotten. “I’m not usually someone who does this type of thing. Normally I’m more of a supporter,” he said.  “I’m thankful I have a job and can provide for my family… I knew these kids had nothing.”

To date, Wise has raised over $2,500 for Ripples of Hope. Even though he successfully concluded his workouts on June 30, he is still actively soliciting more donations in order to get closer to his original goal. Wise said that he sent emails to several organizations asking for after-the-fact pledges. Overall, Wise said he is “happy with the response I got.”

Even when promoting his cause, Wise relegates himself to a figure behind the curtains. When he started raising money, he said, “I wasn’t trying to make a statement, I was trying to make a difference.”

Rony Wise is still collecting donations for Haiti relief. He can be reached at Rony.Wise@alexandriava.gov. One hundred percent of money raised from his pledges is donated to Ripples of Hope.