We were lucky to catch up with Henry Ward recently and have shared our conversation below.
Henry, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s jump to the end – what do you want to be remembered for?
I hope to raise much funds as possible to give to those who are struggling from addiction so that they can afford treatment and aftercare. I also hope to give people strength and courage to speak up, not suffer in silence and seek help for their addictions. I will continue to create and execute large scale long distance running events/challenges and use these as a platform to share my message and story. I hope to leave my mark not only here in Arizona, but around the world as well.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Running Without The Devil is a nonprofit based in Arizona that raises funds for those that cannot afford treatment. I started a RWOTD Transformation Fund. What is the Running Without The Devil (RWOTD) Transformation fund?
The RWOTD Transformation Fund provides monetary contributions to cover recovery costs to a select group of people struggling with alcoholism in order to make lasting positive changes in their lives through the benefits of long distance running and fitness.
Who can apply to receive funds ?
Maricopa County residents who are 100% invested in receiving treatment for alcohol and drugs addiction and using running and fitness as part of their recovery program. During and after successfully completing treatment, the terms of the grants require the recipient to commit to one year of running and fitness which will be instructed by professional running coaches and fitness instructors.
Social Media Exposure
The recovery journey will be documented, recorded and shared as part of social media and email campaigns we share with the world to prove that addicts & alcoholics can recover and often thrive in society.
The grant recipients will be selected by the board of directors of Running Without the Devil.
Under the brand, I also have written two books. “Running Without The Devil” which is my story about my early signs of addiction, active addiction years (22), my absolute ROCK BOTTOM, finally surrendering tom God and completely understanding I could never drink again and entered treatment, aftercare, how I found running and how running has helped me in my recovery. Mt second book :One too many donuts”. This a book to educate children on different forms of addiction, including food, sugar, cell phones and technology, alcohol and drugs and ways to get help and fight the addiction.
Both are available on my website www.runningwithoutthedevil.com and on Amazon, and proceeds go directly towards helping others.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
I was hesitant to share my story about my addiction. I did not feel like it was anyone else’s business. I felt like this was a personal and private family matter. I realized that “I did not want to be the way I was.” Most addicts and alcoholics do not want to be the way the were or are.I had nothing to lose by sharing, in fact, I had a lot to gain. I have gifts from God. It would be extremely selfish not to share these gifts. These gifts are recovery, sobriety, and running. If I did not enter treatment I would either be dead or dying a slow and painful death. I would not be married to my wonderful wife and therefore would not have had my son, who be turning 10 soon!
By sharing I have had the opportunity to give many courage to seek help, start a fitness program, start running, and motivated others to eat better. You never know the impact, and you never know who’s watching. We are all in this thing we call life together, and if everyone would contribute and share their gifts this world would be a better place.
Sharing has given me a purpose and an identity. I am someone was a barfly, a drunk, and going nowhere fast. While drinking and using, I had a bad reputation, it is never too late to change, including your identity. Though there is no cure for addiction, it is not a life sentence.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
Last year, I battled the treadmill for 66.6 hours in a virtual event called “Satan’s Sidewalk.” I will be doing the same thing next week, and will make this an annual thing I do every February. I leaned many things from last year’s event. People say, “I do not know how you do it,” and I have heard “I can’t even run 2 miles on the dreadmill without going insane!” For me, it is not easy, but “going nowhere fast concept” can hone the mind. I have no place to be for three days. I take breaks and sleep at night but get right back on it the next morning with one goal in mind: To stay in the moment. There is a direct correlation between running, ultra running, life, and recovery from addiction. I cannot worry or know how I am going to feel on hour 6, day two, or day 3. All I can worry about is how I am feeling art each present moment. I just keep putting those moments together. I will probably hit rough patches and maybe go to dark places in my mind, but I know that I can get through them. I got through some really hard days and nights for 22 years of hard core addiction, I can get through a few days on Satan’s Sidewalk. We hit the rough patches in life and if we have faith and are willing to take the next right step, we will get through, and closer to where we need to go. The treadmill forces you to stay in the moment. If you start thinking “I hate this, this sucks, I am bored” you are going to quit, no doubt about that! It’s not fun, I would rather be outside, but if we force ourselves to do things we really like doing like running on a treadmill, it can make chores in life we despise much more bearable.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.runningwithoutthedevil.com
- Instagram: @runningwithoutthedevil
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chefhenryward
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/henry-ward-3596861/
- Twitter: @chefhenryward
- Other: Running Without The Devil on Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/s?k=running+without+the+devil&i=stripbooks&crid=LF71ENV56UOR&sprefix=running+without%2Cstripbooks%2C179&ref=nb_sb_ss_c_2_15_ab-sx-reranking-v3-desktop One too many donuts on Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/One-too-many-donuts-childrens/dp/B09RNS7HLX/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1645195674&sr=1-1
Image Credits
None needed