ELY - Joe Weise is expanding his exercise routine of running for merely weight loss to running for a worthy cause.

The 36-year-old environmental educator at Ely’s YMCA Camp Widjiwagan will begin a 200-mile marathon on July 2 and run around the four-mile Trezona Trail, ending on July 4, to raise money for the city’s Head Start program.

He expected to run almost continuously, perhaps 60 hours, to finish his goal.

Weise has been an Ely resident for about eight years and spent many summers of his youth at the nearby YMCA Camp DuNord. He met his wife while working there. They were married there. The couple has two children and all have a love of the outdoors.

He hopes to pass that love of the outdoors to Head Start students by helping to fund field trips and expand their experiences outside of the classroom.

“In 2010, at the age of 30 I saw my weight at nearly 300 pounds and decided to change the way I went through the world,” Weise said. “With diet and exercise I lost about 100 pounds and started running.” 

He started at one mile, then five miles, a marathon, 100 miles, then towing a tire 121 miles back and forth on the gravel road near his home on North Arm Road. “I don’t do anything half-way,” Weise said. “So far I’ve only run for myself, but for my next challenge, my longest distance yet, I have a purpose.”

The Trezona Trail is a 3.67-mile loop and he will need to do about 55 laps.  “I expect it to take about three days with minimal rest,” he said. He will participate in the Fourth of July run, and will also run the route of the parade later that day asking for donations.

“The Ely Area Head Start program needs our help,” Weise said.  “Head Start is a federally-funded pre-Kindergarten program that is at the mercy of both politics and budget. This is a free program that serves primarily children from families with the lowest income in the community. There are teachers and crayons and snacks just like any other preschool, but these children do not get much opportunity for experiential education.”

He estimates the budget for any sort of field trips or extra programs is just $250 for the whole year. “This is not even enough for a single bus ride anywhere and they do not ask for extra money from the income-strapped households,” he said.  “These incredible teachers create every opportunity they can with such a limited budget, taking the kids everywhere within preschooler-walking distance of the school.  I want to see what invaluable experiences they could create with a bigger budget.”

As an experiential educator himself, he said he has seen thousands of children come out of the woods with a new look at the world. “Several studies have shown the links between field trip learning and an increase in curiosity and critical thinking.  These valuable skills should be accessible to all kids no matter their financial status,” he said.

He didn’t put a number on the amount he hopes to raise. He has established an online Go Fund Me fundraising site, and is on Facebook at joeweiserunner. “A donation of $25 is a noticeable percentage of Head Start’s existing budget,” he said. “For some, $5 may be all you can do. That’s great.  I know many people for whom $200 is not an amount of money that would be noticed if it was missing from their wallet. Do it because you like me. Do it because you like kids. Do it because you have high hopes for the future of Ely. Do it because it’s the right thing to do.  It doesn’t matter why, just as long as you do.”