In the video above, Pat Zamkin shares his story and why he returns to the pavement year after year. “I don’t mind telling the story if it has an impact [on the Home],” he said, his voice raw with emotion. “Honestly, when I got the email about getting involved in this … my immediate, knee-jerk reaction was: I’ll do it. Because someone did it for me.”

The former Mercy Home resident and current board member glanced at his surroundings, paused, and said: “There’s no distance that’s too great for Mercy Home, as far as I’m concerned.”

Pat ran his first Marathon in 2016 as a Mercy Home Hero, and ceases to stop, running again in 2017, and signed-up to run in 2018.